Dopaminergic cell differentiation from human embryonic nerve cells in vitro

Abstract

Cell population enriched by determined cells, the precursors of dopaminergic neurons can be used for neurotransplantation. In order to obtain such cell population, we studied the potentialities of dopaminergic differentiation of human embryonic nervous tissue in a cell culture. A number of dopaminergic neurons during cultivation significantly increased from 5.6 ± 4.3% of cells within eyeshot to 23.5 ± 2.6% of cells; at the same time, a number of cells in control specimens reached 8.1 ± 6.5% of cells. The analysis of gene expression associated with this kind of neuronal differentiation confirmed its dopaminergic character. We showed that in the course of cultivation the expression of early transcriptional factors Nurr 1 and Lmx 1b disappears; at the same time, the level of TH expression increases. Thus, the use of special conditions of cultivation allows for obtaining a cell population enriched by the precursors of dopaminergic neurons.