Cells of Adult Brain Germinal Zone Have Properties Akin to Hair Cells and Can Be Used to Replace Inner Ear Sensory Cells After Damage
Cells of adult brain germinal zone have properties akin to hair cells and can be used to replace inner ear sensory cells after damage Dongguang Weia,1, Snezana Levica, Liping Niea, Wei-qiang Gaob, Christine Petitc, Edward G. Jonesa, and Ebenezer N. Yamoaha,1 aDepartment of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Center for Neuroscience, Program in Communication and Sensory Science, University of California, 1544 Newton Court, Davis, CA 95618; bDepartment of Molecular Biology, Genentech, Inc., South San Francisco, CA 94080; and cUnite´deGe´ne´ tique et Physiologie de l’Audition, Unite´Mixte de Recherche S587, Institut National de la Sante´et de la Recherche Me´dicale-Universite´Paris VI, Colle`ge de France, Institut Pasteur, 25 Rue du Dr Roux, 75724 Paris, Cedex 15, France Edited by David Julius, University of California, San Francisco, CA, and approved October 27, 2008 (received for review August 15, 2008) Auditory hair cell defect is a major cause of hearing impairment, often and have an actin-filled process as in the HCs. Thus, we surmise that leading to spiral ganglia neuron (SGN) degeneration. The cell loss that cells of the adult forebrain germinal zone might be potential follows is irreversible in mammals, because inner ear hair cells (HCs) candidate cells to be used autologously for the replacement of have a limited capacity to regenerate. Here, we report that in the nonrenewable HCs and SGNs. adult brain of both rodents and humans, the ependymal layer of the Ependymal cells adjacent to the spinal canal proliferate exten- lateral ventricle contains cells with proliferative potential, which sively upon spinal cord injuries (16, 17).
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