Robust differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells into Schwann cells.

Research into Schwann cell (SC)-related diseases has been hampered by the difficulty of obtaining human-derived SCs, which have limited proliferative capacity. This has resulted in a delay in progress in drug discovery and cell therapy targeting SCs. To overcome these limitations, we developed a robust method for inducing the differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) into SCs. We established hiPSC lines and successfully generated high-purity Schwann cell precursors (SCPs) from size-controlled hiPSC aggregates by precisely timed treatment with our proprietary enzyme solution. Such SCPs were successfully expanded and further differentiated into myelin basic protein (MBP) expressing SC populations when treated with an appropriate medium containing dibutyryl-cAMP (db-cAMP). These differentiated cells secreted factors that induced neurite outgrowth in vitro. Our method allows for the efficient and stable production of SCPs and SCs from hiPSCs. This robust induction and maturation method has the potential to be a valuable tool in drug discovery and cell therapy targeting SC-related diseases. Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Citation

Norie Tooi, Rio Okama, Haruka Sato, Haruko Inose, Hiroyuki Ogasawara, Hisato Senda, Norio Nakatsuji, Kensuke Kato, Takayuki Kiboku, Koichi Igura. Robust differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells into Schwann cells. Biochemical and biophysical research communications. 2024 Oct 15;729:150353

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PMID: 38972137

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