Umbilical Cord Blood Cells CD133+/CD133− Cultivation in Neural Proliferation Media Differentiates Towards Neural Cell Lineages

Background and Aims Umbilical cord blood (UCB) has been identified as a good source of hematopoietic and nonhematopoietic stem cells that can be easily isolated. In the present study we investigated the possibility of whether stem cells in mononuclear UCB grown under defined conditions can produce progeny with neural phenotype. Methods A combination of antigen-driven magnetic cell sorting (MACs) method and defined culture conditions specific for cells of neural lineages were used for isolation, expansion and differentiation of CD133+/− cells from UCB. Both UCB-derived fractions were expanded by exposure to growth factors (EGF, bFGF). Differentiation was induced by replacing them with fetal bovine serum. Using immunocytochemistry, the cell markers for neural (MAP2, GFAP, RIP) and non-neural lineages (S-100, von Willebrand factor) were detected. Results The analysis revealed occurrence of fully mature neural and non-neural lineages, which showed qualitative and quantitative differences between population of CD133+ and CD133− cells. The expression levels of MAP2 and RIP in CD133+ were significantly higher than in CD133−, more GFAP positive cells were found in the CD133−. At the same time, S-100 was expressed by 32.47 ± 6.24% of CD133− cells and 29.42 ± 1.32% of CD133− cell expressed a von Willebrand factor antigen. Conclusions Our results indicate that stem cells derived from umbilical cord blood are easy to obtain, proliferate and are able to differentiate towards the cells of neural lineages, which represents a promising way for their utilization in cell-based therapies for CNS injuries and diseases.