Efficient conversion of astrocytes to functional midbrain dopaminergic neurons using a single polycistronic vector.

ABSTRACT: Direct cellular reprogramming is a powerful new tool for regenerative medicine. In efforts to understand and treat Parkinson's Disease (PD), which is marked by the degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the midbrain, direct reprogramming provides a valuable new source of these cells. Astrocytes, the most plentiful cells in the central nervous system, are an ideal starting population for the direct generation of dopaminergic neurons. In addition to their potential utility in cell replacement therapies for PD or in modeling the disease in vitro, astrocyte-derived dopaminergic neurons offer the prospect of direct in vivo reprogramming within the brain. As a first step toward this goal, we report the reprogramming of astrocytes to dopaminergic neurons using three transcription factors - ASCL1

SUBMITTER: Addis RC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3235158 | biostudies-literature | 2011

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature