Umbilical cord blood cell-derived neurospheres differentiate into Schwann-like cells

In this study, we examined the phenotypic and bioassay characteristics of human umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (UCB-MSCs) differentiated along a Schwann cells lineage. Initially, we induced human UCB-MSCs into floating neurospheres, and then, neurospheres were induced to differentiate into Schwann-like cells using glia growth factors. Differentiated UCB-MSCs showed morphological changes similar to those of Schwann cells. Expression of the Schwann cell markers was determined by immunocytochemical staining and western blotting. Furthermore, differentiated UCB-MSCs could promote neurite outgrowth in coculture with dorsal root ganglia neurons. These results show that UCB-MSCs can be differentiated into cells that are Schwann-like in terms of morphology, phenotype, and function.