Figure 6

Survival, differentiation and extensive axonal outgrowth from spinally grafted HSSC. A: Grafted GFP+ or hNUMA+ cells can be seen almost completely filling the lesion cavity at eight weeks after grafting (yellow dotted area; inserts). B: Detail from ‘A’ depicting a dense GFP+ neurite network in the lateral funiculus (LF) and with numerous axons projecting towards α-motoneurons and interneurons in the gray matter (insert). C: In areas with a dense GFP+ axodendritic network, clear hSYN immunoreactivity associated with GFP+ processes can be detected (yellow arrows). D: The majority of grafted hNUMA+ cells showed development of the neuronal hNSE/DCX+ phenotype. E, F: A subpopulation of grafted hNUMA+ cells showed the astrocyte (hGFAP+) and oligodendrocyte (Olig 2) phenotype (F; yellow arrows). G: Using mitotic marker Ki67, regularly distributed hNUMA/Ki67+ grafted cells were identified (yellow arrows). (Scale Bars: A: 1.5 mm (inserts: 200 μm); B: 600 μm (insert: 75 μm); C: 60 μm; D: 20 μm; E-G: 10 μm). HSSC, human fetal spinal cord-derived neural stem cells; SCI, spinal cord injury.