FIGURE 3.
Maintenance of “stemness” in cultured NS/PCs. (A) Levels of SOX2 mRNA were evaluated using RT-PCR in 2D and 3D cultures under varying media conditions: stem cell maintenance (STEM), oligodendrocyte-lineage conditioning (PRE-DIFF), and oligodendrocyte differentiation (DIFF). Error bars show the standard deviation (N ≥ 4). (B) NS/PCs cultured in 2D (top) or 3D with YIGSR, IKVAV, and RGD peptides (bottom) were immunofluorescently labeled for nestin (red) and SOX2 (green). Cells cultured in STEM (42 days, left) or in differentiation conditions (PREDIFF, days 28–42 + DIFF, days 43–70; right) both showed expression of nestin and SOX2. Images are 200×; inset images are 1000×.