Efficient induction of functional neurons from adult human fibroblasts.
Author
Summary, in English
Cellular reprogramming is a rapidly developing technology by which somatic cells are turned into pluripotent stem cells or other somatic cell types through expression of specific combinations of genes. This allows for the generation of patient-specific cell lines that can serve as tools for understanding disease pathogenesis, for drug screens and, potentially, for cell replacement therapies. Several cellular models of neurological disorders based on induced pluripotent cells (iPS cells) have been developed, and iPS-derived neurons are being explored as candidates for transplantation. Recent findings show that neurons can also be induced directly from embryonic and postnatal somatic cells by expression of defined combinations of genes. This conversion does not occur through a pluripotent stem cell stage, which eliminates the risk for tumor formation. Here, we demonstrate for the first time that functional neurons can be generated via direct conversion of fibroblasts also from adult individuals. Thus, this technology is an attractive alternative to iPS cells for generating patient- and disease-specific neurons suitable for disease modeling and autologous transplantation.
Department/s
- Developmental and Regenerative Neurobiology
- Neurology, Lund
- Lung Biology
- Department of Experimental Medical Science
- Respiratory Medicine, Allergology, and Palliative Medicine
- StemTherapy: National Initiative on Stem Cells for Regenerative Therapy
- EpiHealth: Epidemiology for Health
- MultiPark: Multidisciplinary research focused on Parkinson´s disease
Publishing year
2011
Language
English
Pages
3311-3316
Publication/Series
Cell Cycle
Volume
10
Issue
19
Links
Document type
Journal article
Publisher
Landes Bioscience
Topic
- Cell Biology
Status
Published
Research group
- Developmental and Regenerative Neurobiology
- Lung Biology
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 1551-4005