BIOT 96 |
| Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been shown to give rise to a number of cell lineages. It is reported that cAMP induces MSCs to differentiate into neural cells. Such conclusion is mostly based on morphological changes and expression of neural markers. Our present study suggests other considerations such as apoptosis should also be taken into account along with the differentiation behavior. An increase in cAMP level inhibits MSCs proliferation by blocking G1/S transition, which drives a portion of the cells towards apoptosis. These apoptotic cells have disrupted cytoskeleton structures and feature a neurite-like appearance due to the retraction of the cell body towards the center. Since many of the neuron markers are cAMP target genes, it is possible that while cAMP also may up-regulate the expression of a subset of neuron markers. Therefore, further study is on-going to determine whether cAMP indeed induces differentiation of MSCs into mature neural cells. |
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Stem Cells: Engineering the Embryonic and Adult Stem Cell Niche
3:00 PM-5:00 PM, Monday, August 20, 2007 BCEC -- 108, Oral
Division of Biochemical Technology |