title: Pluripotent stem cells for Schwann cell engineering.
abstract: Tissue engineering of Schwann cells (SCs) can serve a number of purposes, such as in vitro SC-related disease modeling, treatment of peripheral nerve diseases or peripheral nerve injury, and, potentially, treatment of CNS diseases. SCs can be generated from autologous stem cells in vitro by recapitulating the various stages of in vivo neural crest formation and SC differentiation. In this review, we survey the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying these in vivo processes. We then focus on the current in vitro strategies for generating SCs from two sources of pluripotent stem cells, namely embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Different methods for SC engineering from ESCs and iPSCs are reviewed and suggestions are proposed for optimizing the existing protocols. Potential safety issues regarding the clinical application of iPSC-derived SCs are discussed as well. Lastly, we will address future aspects of SC engineering.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Section Medical Physiology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Antonius Deusinglaan 1, 9713 AV, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Ming-San
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Erik
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Boddeke
authors.forename: Sjef
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Copray
mesh_terms: D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000235:genetics*; D053595:Embryonic Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000637:transplantation; D006801:Humans; D057026:Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000637:transplantation; D009432:Neural Crest / Q000254:growth & development; D059348:Peripheral Nerve Injuries / Q000628:therapy; D010523:Peripheral Nervous System Diseases / Q000628:therapy; D012583:Schwann Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000637:transplantation; D023822:Tissue Engineering