细胞技术

Compared to eutherian mammals, birds retain a primitive form of epiblast development. Molecular studies of the avian epiblast can provide valuable insight for mammalian epiblast research. Here, we introduce several basic techniques in handling epiblast-stage embryos of the chick, ...

Embryonic stem (ES) cells are unique models for investigating early development and cell differentiation. First identified in mouse and later in other mammals, these cells have also been isolated in avian species. Here, using chicken as a model, we describe a set of protocols allowing the isola ...

Whole-mount in situ hybridization (WISH) is a method to visualize gene expression through hybridization of in vitro synthesized riboprobes to cellular mRNAs. WISH has been used in developmental biology for decades and was adapted to many species, especially for model organisms of devel ...

Extracellular matrix can regulate multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MMSC) differentiation, with potential applications for tissue engineering. A relief of mineralized bone takes essential effect on MMSC fate. Nevertheless, delicate structure and a hierarchy of nich ...

Marrow stromal cells (MSCs) are relatively rare cells difficult to visualize in marrow biopsies or detect in aspirated marrow. Under specific conditions MSC can be expanded in vitro and the population can give rise to several mesenchymal lineages. “MSC” also refers to mesenchymal stem cells ...

The availability of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) or skeletal stem cells (SSCs) is vital to many of the tissue engineering strategies currently being developed for repairing bone and cartilage. One difficulty with using this cell population is that SSCs represent only a small fraction of the ...

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) can differentiate into several types of hematopoietic cells, such as erythrocytes, megakaryocytes, lymphocytes, neutrophils, or macrophages, and also undergo self-renewal to sustain hematopoiesis throughout an organism’s lifetime. HSCs e ...

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) undergo multilineage differentiation or self-renewal to maintain normal hematopoiesis and to sustain the size of the HSC pool throughout life. These processes are determined by a complex interplay of molecular signals between HSC and other cellular c ...

Morphometry is a classical quantitative method often used in biology to provide a data basis for functional interpretations/interactions of a particular organ or system. Herein we took advantage of this valuable approach to evaluate the spermatogonial stem cell niche using the horse t ...

The germaria of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster present an excellent model to study germline stem cell–niche interactions. Two to three adult stem cells are surrounded by a number of somatic cells that form the niche. Here we describe how Drosophilae germaria can be dissected and specif ...

Stem cells have an enormous capacity of self-renewal, as well as the ability to differentiate into specialized cell types. Proper control of these two properties of stem cells is crucial for animal development, growth control, and reproduction. Germline stem cells (GSCs) are a self-renewing ...

The design of tissue culture conditions that faithfully reproduce the characteristics of cells in their native environment remains one of the main challenges of cancer stem cell (CSC) biology. Here we describe a detailed methodology for the isolation and expansion of both human colon CSCs a ...

Orthotopic transplantation of tumor tissue into recipient mice has long been established to study the role of the microenvironment in tumorigenesis and metastasis. Many of these transplantation assays involve the surgical implantation of an undissociated piece of tumor tissue. H ...

Stem cells have the ability to switch between proliferative (self-renewal) and differentiation modes. The Drosophila germarium is a well-established in vivo model for the study of communication between stem cells and their niche. One commonly used technique for such study is immunost ...

Mounting evidences indicate that leukemic cells in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are derived from leukemia stem cells (LSC). In analogy to normal hematopoietic stem cells (HSC), LSC remain mostly dormant and are hence resistant to conventional chemotherapy. Residual, ph ...

The presence of disseminated tumor cells (DTCs) in the bone marrow is associated with poor prognosis of cancer patients. However, little is known about the biology of DTCs due to lack of relevant animal models. Here, we describe the methods for detecting and isolating human DTCs from the murine bone m ...

It is widely accepted that mammalian stem cells reside in a specialized cellular and a cellular microenvironment called the niche. The niche contrary to other tissues is characterized by a low partial Oxygen pressure (ppO2). This microenvironment protects stem cells from deleterious e ...

Amniotic fluid-derived stem (AFS) cells have been described as an appealing source of stem cells because of their (1) fetal, non-embryonic origin, (2) easy access during pregnancy overcoming the ethical issues related both to the use of human embryonic cells and to the postnatal tissue biopsy w ...

Skeletal muscle tissue has a remarkable capability of regenerating in pathological conditions or after injury. The principal muscle stem cells, satellite cells, are responsible for this prompt and efficient process. Normally quiescent in their niches underneath the basal lamina of ...

Study of stem cell phenotype and functions requires their proper isolation. Stem cells isolated from skeletal muscle are a useful tool to explore molecular pathways involved in the regulation of myogenesis. Among progenitor cells, a subset of cells, called reserve cells, has been identif ...