Lesion environments direct transplanted neural progenitors towards a wound repair astroglial phenotype in mice

Neural progenitor cells (NPCs) are being explored as a potential therapy for central nervous system (CNS) injuries. This study investigates how the environment of a CNS lesion affects the fate of transplanted NPCs. The study found that when NPCs are transplanted into uninjured mouse CNS, they differentiate into cells similar to healthy astrocytes and oligodendrocytes. However, when transplanted into CNS lesions after stroke or spinal cord injury, they become cells that resemble host astroglia involved in wound repair. These findings suggest that the environment in a CNS lesion directs transplanted NPCs to become a type of astroglia that naturally helps in wound repair. This understanding is crucial for developing effective cell transplantation therapies for CNS injuries.

• 1
  NPCs transplanted into uninjured CNS differentiate into cells transcriptionally similar to healthy astrocytes and oligodendrocytes.
• 2
  NPCs transplanted into subacute CNS lesions differentiate into cells sharing transcriptional, morphological, and functional features with newly proliferated host astroglia involved in wound repair.
• 3
  Non-cell autonomous cues in subacute CNS lesions direct the differentiation of grafted NPCs towards a wound repair astroglial phenotype.