Bone marrow stromal cell-derived schwann cells

Abstract

There is provided a method of inducing bone marrow stromal cells to differentiate into bone marrow stromal cell-derived Schwann cells in vitro, comprising the steps of: collecting bone marrow stromal cells from bone marrow and culturing the cells in a standard essential culture medium supplemented with a serum; adding a reducing agent to the culture medium and further culturing the cells; adding a differentiation inducing agent to the culture medium and further culturing the cells; and adding a cyclic AMP-augmenting agent or a cyclic AMP analogue and/or a glial cell differentiation and survival stimulating factor to the culture medium, and further culturing the cells to obtain the bone marrow stromal cell-derived Schwann cells. There are also provided bone marrow stromal cell-derived Schwann cells obtained thereby and a pharmaceutical composition for neural regeneration that comprises them.

1 - 16 . (canceled)  
     
     
         17 . Isolated bone marrow stromal cell-derived Schwann cells obtained by the method comprising: 
 (1) collecting bone marrow stromal cells from bone marrow, and culturing said cells in a standard essential culture medium supplemented with a serum    (2) adding a reducing agent to said culture medium, and further culturing said cells;    (3) adding retinoic acid to said culture medium, and further culturing said cells; and    (4) adding orskolin, and/or a differentiation, survival and growth stimulating factor which acts on nerves and glial cells to said culture medium, and further culturing said cells to obtain said bone marrow stromal cell-derived Schwann cells.    
     
     
         18 . Isolated bone marrow stromal cell-derived Schwann cells.  
     
     
         19 . A pharmaceutical composition for nueral regeneration, comprising isolated bone marrow stromal cell-derived Schwann cells as defined in  claim 17 .  
     
     
         20 . A method of treating neural disease by transplanting Schwann cells as defined in  claim 17  into a patient with neural disease to promote regeneration of the neural cells damaged by physcial injury.  
     
     
         21 . A pharmaceutical composition for nueral regeneration, comprising isolated bone marrow stromal cell-derived Schwann cells as defined in  claim 18 .  
     
     
         22 . A method of treating neural disease by transplanting Schwann cells as defined in  claim 18  or a pharmceutical composition as defined in  claim 19  into a patient with neural disease to promote regeneration of the neural cells damaged by physcial injury.