Experimental Studies On Induction Of Embryonic Neural Stem Cells Into Retinal Ganglion Cells

Objective To investigate the methods of induction of embryonic neural stem cells (NSCs) into retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). Methods Embryonic neural stem cells from the hippocampus and the superior colliculus (SC) are cultured in a serum-free medium, and the morphology and multiplication capacity difference are compared. Visual pathway tissues from rats of different ages are cultured and the in vitro growth process is observed. NSCs from different source are co-cultured with retina, optic nerve or SC tissues from newborn rats, adult rats, optic nerve transected rats or sham operation rats. The differentiated cells are identified by immunofluorescence technique. Results Both embryonic hippocampus and superior colliculus derived NSCs have a similar morphological structure while their multiplication rate is different. The tissue growth tends towards bloom 3 days inoculation while some tissues become decline after 2 weeks. After transection of optical nerve in adult rats, co-culture of the superior colliculus tissue with the superior colliculus derived NSCs can induce differentiation of NSCs into RGCs. Co-culture of the superior colliculus and retinal tissues of newborn rats with superior colliculus derived NSCs also can induce differentiation of NSCs into RGCs. Conclusion NSCs from special resource can differentiate into RGCs under suitable culture conditions.