Isolation and culture of neural progenitor cells from rat postnatal cerebellum

The mammalian brain contains undifferentiated, mitotically active, and multipotent neural stem/progenitor cells that in vivo contribute new neurons and glia to specific areas of the mature brain. When isolated under the appropriate conditions, these cells maintain in vitro the ability to proliferate and differentiate into cells that express neuronal and glial markers. Neural stem/progenitor cells have been identified and isolated from many regions of the embryonic, postnatal, and adult central nervous system, including cerebellum. This chapter details techniques to isolate and culture neural progenitor cells from rat postnatal cerebellum, which can be used as an in vitro model to study the molecular mechanisms underlying proliferation and differentiation into mature neural cells induced by various stimuli including pharmacological agents.