Prominin-1 allows prospective isolation of neural stem cells from the adult murine hippocampus

J Neurosci. 2013 Feb 13;33(7):3010-24. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3363-12.2013.

Abstract

Prominin-1 (CD133) is commonly used to isolate stem and progenitor cells from the developing and adult nervous system and to identify cancer stem cells in brain tumors. However, despite extensive characterization of Prominin-1(+) precursor cells from the adult subventricular zone, no information about the expression of Prominin-1 by precursor cells in the subgranular zone (SGZ) of the adult hippocampus has been available. We show here that Prominin-1 is expressed by a significant number of cells in the SGZ of adult mice in vivo and ex vivo, including postmitotic astrocytes. A small subset of Prominin-1(+) cells coexpressed the nonspecific precursor cell marker Nestin as well as GFAP and Sox2. Upon fluorescence-activated cell sorting, only Prominin-1/Nestin double-positive cells fulfilled the defining stem cell criteria of proliferation, self-renewal, and multipotentiality as assessed by a neurosphere assay. In addition, isolated primary Prominin-1(+) cells preferentially migrated to the neurogenic niche in the SGZ upon transplantation in vivo. Finally, despite its expression by various stem and progenitor cells, Prominin-1 turned out to be dispensable for precursor cell proliferation in vitro and in vivo. Nevertheless, a net decrease in hippocampal neurogenesis, by ∼30% was found in Prominin-1 knock-out mice, suggesting other roles in controlling adult hippocampal neurogenesis. Remarkably, an upregulation of Prominin-2 was detected in Prominin-1-deficient mice highlighting a potential compensatory mechanism, which might explain the lack of severe symptoms in individuals carrying mutations in the Prom1 gene.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • AC133 Antigen
  • Adult Stem Cells / drug effects*
  • Animals
  • Antigens, CD / genetics*
  • Antigens, CD / metabolism*
  • Antimetabolites
  • Bromodeoxyuridine
  • Cell Adhesion
  • Cell Cycle / drug effects
  • Cell Differentiation
  • Cell Proliferation
  • Cell Separation / methods
  • DNA, Complementary / biosynthesis
  • Dentate Gyrus / metabolism
  • Flow Cytometry
  • Glycoproteins / genetics*
  • Glycoproteins / metabolism*
  • Hippocampus / cytology*
  • Hippocampus / drug effects
  • Immunohistochemistry
  • Intermediate Filament Proteins / genetics
  • Intermediate Filament Proteins / metabolism
  • Membrane Glycoproteins / biosynthesis
  • Membrane Glycoproteins / genetics
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice, Knockout
  • Nerve Tissue Proteins / genetics
  • Nerve Tissue Proteins / metabolism
  • Nestin
  • Neural Stem Cells / drug effects*
  • Peptides / genetics*
  • Peptides / metabolism*
  • Protein Isoforms
  • RNA / isolation & purification
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction

Substances

  • AC133 Antigen
  • Antigens, CD
  • Antimetabolites
  • DNA, Complementary
  • Glycoproteins
  • Intermediate Filament Proteins
  • Membrane Glycoproteins
  • Nerve Tissue Proteins
  • Nes protein, mouse
  • Nestin
  • Peptides
  • Prom1 protein, mouse
  • Prom2 protein, mouse
  • Protein Isoforms
  • RNA
  • Bromodeoxyuridine