title: Crestospheres: Long-Term Maintenance of Multipotent, Premigratory Neural Crest Stem Cells.
abstract: Premigratory neural crest cells comprise a transient, embryonic population that arises within the CNS, but subsequently migrates away and differentiates into many derivatives. Previously, premigratory neural crest could not be maintained in a multipotent, adhesive state without spontaneous differentiation. Here, we report conditions that enable maintenance of neuroepithelial "crestospheres" that self-renew and retain multipotency for weeks. Moreover, under differentiation conditions, these cells can form multiple derivatives in vitro and in vivo after transplantation into chick embryos. Similarly, human embryonic stem cells directed to a neural crest fate can be maintained as crestospheres and subsequently differentiated into several derivatives. By devising conditions that maintain the premigratory state in vitro, these results demonstrate that neuroepithelial neural crest precursors are capable of long-term self-renewal. This approach will help uncover mechanisms underlying their developmental potential, differentiation and, together with the induced pluripotent stem cell techniques, the pathology of human neurocristopathies.
authors.affiliation: Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kerosuo
authors.affiliation: Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA.
authors.forename: Shuyi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nie
authors.affiliation: Center for Craniofacial Molecular Biology and Department of Biochemistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA.
authors.forename: Ruchi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bajpai
authors.affiliation: Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA. Electronic address: mbronner@caltech.edu.
authors.forename: Marianne E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Bronner
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002465:Cell Movement; D002642:Chick Embryo; D002645:Chickens; D006801:Humans; D057026:Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology; D039902:Multipotent Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D009432:Neural Crest / Q000166:cytology*