[Frank Sheed]

http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/abstract/0503965102v1

Can some scientist/physician translate this for the common folk?

Neuroscience
Phenotypic and functional characterization of adult brain neuropoiesis

( adult stem cells | electrophysiology | in vitro | neurogenesis | subventricular zone )
Bjorn Scheffler *{dagger}{ddagger}, Noah M. Walton *{dagger}, Dean D. Lin {sect}, A. Katrin Goetz *, Grigori Enikolopov ¶, Steve N. Roper *{sect}, and Dennis A. Steindler *{ddagger}{sect}||

Departments of *Neuroscience and {sect}Neurosurgery, University of Florida, McKnight Brain Institute, Gainesville, FL 32610; and ¶Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724

Communicated by Darwin J. Prockop, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, May 12, 2005 (received for review January 18, 2005)

The modern concept of neurogenesis in the adult brain is predicated on the premise that multipotent glial cells give rise to new neurons throughout life. Although extensive evidence exists indicating that this is the case, the transition from glial to neuronal phenotype remains poorly understood. A unique monolayer cell-culture system was developed to induce, expose, and recapitulate the entire developmental series of events of subventricular zone (SVZ) neurogenesis. We show here, using immunophentoypic, ultrastructural, electrophysiological, and time-lapse analyses, that SVZ-derived glial fibrillary acidic proteinlow/A2B5+/nestin+ candidate founder cells undergo metamorphosis to eventually generate large numbers of fully differentiated interneuron phenotypes. A model of postnatal neurogenesis is considered in light of known embryonic events and reveals a limited developmental potential of SVZ stem/progenitor cells, whereby ancestral cells in both embryonic and postnatal/adult settings give rise to glia and GABAergic interneurons.

[aposiopetic]

Overview: Some all-purpose cells inside our brains basically sit on the sidelines until called into action. How these all-purpose cells inside our brains develop into specialized cells that we need has been a mystery. These scientists were able to take a series of pictures of certain all-purpose cells and caught these cells in the act of developing into specialized cells.

A unique monolayer cell-culture system was developed to induce, expose, and recapitulate the entire developmental series of events of subventricular zone (SVZ) neurogenesis.

The scientists gave all-purpose cells from mice a nice environment to grow up in that seems to be enough like the environment inside the brain to coax the all-purpose cells into developing into specialized cells.

We show here, using immunophentoypic, ultrastructural, electrophysiological, and time-lapse analyses, that SVZ-derived glial fibrillary acidic proteinlow/A2B5+/nestin+ candidate founder cells undergo metamorphosis to eventually generate large numbers of fully differentiated interneuron phenotypes.

The scientists used different types of evidence, not just the time-lapse photographs, to show that they were observing the development of the specialized cells. Although seeing is believing, the scientists also used other ways --molecular fingerprinting, if you will -- (a) to define some of the distinctive characteristics of the all-purpose cells and (b) to show that the specialized cells were indeed quite different from the all-purpose cells that they came from.

I won't dwell on the implications of the research other than to say that it doesn't look like only embryos have identifiable cells that can grow into specialized nerve cells. This principle may have been established before this research came out, but certainly this research strengthens the case.

I hope this helps. Feel free to ask follow-up.