Generation of Human Neurons and Oligodendrocytes from Pluripotent Stem Cells for Modeling Neuron-Oligodendrocyte Interactions

The protocols described here, are expected to facilitate future studies on oligodendroglial defects, in the pathogenesis of neuro degeneration. This is an improved method that can be used to generate functional human oligodendrocyte lineage cells in only three to four weeks, and establish a co-culture system to model the neuron oligodendrocyte connections. The protocol can be used to study not only Alzheimer's disease, but any other disease associated aspect of neuron oligodendrocyte interactions.

To begin, plate approximately one million HEK293T cells in each T75 flask to achieve 40%confluency, then transfect them with plasmids expressing tetracycline inducible NGN2 and puromycin resistant tetracycline transactivator gene, along with the three helper plasmids. Use PEI for transfection. Change the media after 16 hours.

Harvest released viral particles by collecting culture media every day and replacing it with fresh media for three days. Pool the collected media for purification, then filter the virus through a 0.22 micrometer filter and centrifuge at 49, 000 times G for 90 minutes. After centrifugation, re-suspend the pellet in the appropriate volume of PBS glucose.

Use commercially available H1 human ES cells to perform neuron induction. Culture the cells on extracellular matrix solution coated 6-well plates with ESL maintenance medium and incubate the plates at 37 degrees Celsius with 5%carbon dioxide. Two days before induction of differentiation, detach ES cells by adding one milliliter of cell detachment solution and incubating at room temperature for 10 minutes.

Transfer the cells to a tube, then wash the well with two milliliters of media and add it to the same tube. Centrifuge the cells at 300 times G for five minutes. Then re-suspend the pellet in media and plate the cells onto matrix coated 6-well plates at the seating density of one times 10 to the fifth cells per well.

On the next day, add lentiviruses, expressing NGN2 plus puro. R, and tetracycline transactivator together with polybrene in fresh ES cell maintenance medium. On day zero, add two micrograms per milliliter doxycycline in DMEM/F-12 medium supplemented with N2 and without morphogens.

On day one, add puromycin in fresh DMEM/F-12, plus N2 and doxycycline to the final concentration of one microgram per milliliter. Select the transduced cells in puromycin for at least 24 hours. On day two, detach differentiating neurons with cell detachment solution and re-plate them on 24-well plates coated with matrix solution.

Maintain them in MBA B27 medium without doxycycline. Culture pure induced neurons on the plates, coated with extracellular matrix-based solutions. To perform neural progenitor cell generation, culture H1 human ES cells and transdifferentiate them into neural progenitor cells, as described in the text manuscript.

On day negative one, seed 0.5 to one million cells in ES cell maintenance medium into each well of a 6-well plate coated with growth factor reduced matrix solution. On day zero, treat cells for 24 hours with ES cell maintenance medium supplemented with 2%DMSO. On days one through six, change the full media with warm neural induction medium containing some add inhibitors from a commercial kit.

On day seven, passage NPCs using cell detachment solution and plate them at a seating density of one to two times 10 to the fifth cells per well of a 24-well plate. Assay the differentiation efficiency by immunohistochemical staining for absence of pluripotentcy marker and presence of NPC markers. To generate the oligodendrocyte precursor cells, plate the NPCs in warm neural induction medium with some add inhibitors from a commercial kit.

On day eight, prepare a solution of 1%DMSO in the OPC differentiation medium, and treat the plated NPCs for 24 hours. On day nine, replace the media with fresh OPC differentiation medium without DMSO, then feed the cells every other day until day 15. If the the cells reach confluence before day 15, passage them to the seating density of one to two times 10 to the fifth cells per well.

On day 14, plate OPCs in OPC differentiation medium at a density of one to two times 10 to the fifth cells per well, in a 24-well plate. Test cells for the presence of OPC specific markers by IHC staining or qPCR, and for the absence of NPC markers. On day 15, replace media with OL maturation medium.

Change the medium every other day or every day. When cells reach 90%confluence, split them at a one to three ratio for up to two passages or until cell division slows down substantially. If OPCs divide too fast and reach confluencey in less than three days, add Ara-C at a concentration of two to five micromolar for one to three days.

On day 14, plate the IOPCs at a density of one times 10 to the fifth cells per well in a 24-well plate in OPC differentiation medium. On the next day, detach the induced human neurons with cell detachment solution. Add neurons onto the cultured OPCs, plating at the seating density of two times 10 to the fifth cells per well.

Use co-culture medium containing neurobasal A medium, 2%B27 supplement, and 100 nanograms per milliliter T3 triiodothyronine. Change the medium on the next day and then every other day. If OPCs proliferate too fast and reach confluency in less than three days, add two to five micromolar Ara-C.

It is important that the starting human pluripotent stem cells exhibit a high degree of pluripotentcy for the successful generation of induced neurons, or OPCs and oligodendrocytes. Therefore, cells should be stained for specific markers, such as OCT-4 and SOX2, before starting either of the induction protocols. Human H1 cells were used to obtain induced excitatory forebrain neurons.

Pure neurons in culture started expressing synapse in one at day 14 to 16. IOPCs were generated in two weeks and mature oligodendrocytes in four to five weeks. DMSO treatment enriched the number of cells in the early G1 phase for better signaling Integration.

Specific OPC markers were detected as early as two weeks after plating of ES H1 cells. The IOPC population at two weeks was fairly homogenous, with over 95%of cells positive for 04 staining and a high level of immunoreactivity for other markers. After initiation of oligodendrocyte maturation, specific oligodendrocyte markers were detected starting at day 28.

The ideal plating densities for induced neurons, and IOPCs, need to be determined with a series of cell number titrations to achieve proper differentiation. After four weeks, in co-cultures, the IOPCs should be adequately differentiated into oligodendrocytes that are positive for specific markers such as MBP. This co-culture system can robustly boost the number of synapses, indicating that the IOPCs provide a neuronal support through physical contact or release of trophic factors.

This described procedure can be further sophisticated by adding different brain cell types. For example, stem cells derived human astrocytes to model novel aspects of neuron glial interactions in health and disease.