| abstract |
The invention discloses a method for inducing human or animal somatic cells into neural stem cells and the use of the neural stem cells obtained by the method. Somatic cells can be induced into neural stem cells (induced neural stem cells, iNSCs) by overexpressing the transcription factor Ptf1a in isolated human or animal somatic cells and culturing them in a medium containing EGF and bFGF. The iNSCs obtained by this method have the ability of self-renewal, can be stably passaged for more than 50 passages, and maintain the original cell characteristics. Cultured in different in vitro differentiation media, iNSCs can efficiently differentiate into neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes. Injecting iNSCs in animals, the injected cells can be integrated into neural tissues such as retina and brain. The method used in the present invention is simpler, more efficient and safer than previous methods. The iNSCs obtained by the method of the present invention and the further differentiated cells thereof can be applied to cell models of neurological diseases, drug screening, stem cell therapy and the like. |