The ablation of glial fibrillary acidic protein-positive cells from the adult central nervous system results in the loss of forebrain neural stem cells but not retinal stem cells.
The adult mammalian forebrain subependyma contains neural stem cells (NSCs) capable of self-renewal and multilineage differentiation. The in vivo identification of NSCs has not been definitively addressed using a loss of function approach. Using a transgenic mouse expressing herpes-simplex virus thymidine kinase from the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) promotor, we have selectively killed dividing GFAP-positive cells in the presence of ganciclovir (GCV) and shown a > 95% loss in the numbers of NSCs, as assayed by the formation of clonally derived neurospheres in vitro. This loss is seen following 3 days of GCV exposure in vivo or in vitro only and cannot be rescued by coculturing with pure astrocyte populations or control (green fluorescent protein-expressing) subependymal cells. Exposure to GCV in vitro has no effect on adult retinal stem cells hence, we conclude that adult forebrain NSCs comprise a subpopulation of the GFAP-positive cells within the subependyma.
Morshead
Cindi M
CM
Department of Surgery, University of Toronto, 1 King's College Circle, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A8, Canada. cindi.morsehead@utoronto.ca
Garcia
A Denize
AD
Sofroniew
Michael V
MV
van Der Kooy
Derek
D
D000818:Animals; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D002469:Cell Separation; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D002552:Cerebral Ventricles / Q000166:cytology; D018920:Coculture Techniques; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D015774:Ganciclovir / Q000494:pharmacology; D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D051379:Mice; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D016548:Prosencephalon / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D012160:Retina / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D018139:Simplexvirus / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000502:physiology*
D000998:Antiviral Agents; D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein; D015774:Ganciclovir