Quantifying Morphology of a Differentiating Neuroblastoma Cell Line

SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells are a subclone cell line of SK-N-SH cells derived from neural crest that were originally taken from human bone marrow during a biopsy. Research has shown that these cells can be cultured in vitro to differentiate into mature, neuronal phenotypes such as dopaminergic neurons. Here, we added to these discoveries by establishing a quantitative profile for the SH-SY5Y cells of morphometric features including neurite length, branchpoint numbers, and soma area over the span of 18 days. Overall, we showed that in SH-SY5Y cells neurite length initially decreased followed by a dramatic increase of both neurite length and branching. In contrast, soma area for the SH-SY5Y cells initially increased and then stabilized; followed by a small decrease in size. By determining these morphological changes along various timepoints of SH-SY5Y cell development during the programmed cell differentiation process, we provide a set of baseline data for future mechanistic studies in human-derived neuronal cultures.