Web Release Date: July 23,
Using the Chorions of Fertilized Zebrafish Eggs as a Biomaterial for the Attachment and Differentiation of Mouse Stem Cells
and
Microsystem Research Center, Korea Institute of Science Technology, Seoul 136-791, Korea, and Department of Electrical Engineering and School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Korea University, Seoul 136-701, Korea
Received February 17, 2005
In Final Form: June 20, 2005
Abstract:
The development of proper biomaterials is critical for the success of cell therapy and modern tissue engineering. Here, we extruded the yolk and remaining inner mass from fertilized zebrafish eggs and used the resulting chorions as a biomaterial for the differentiation and attachment of mouse P19 embryonic carcinoma (EC) cells. Cells inserted into the chorion showed the spontaneous formation of embryoid body due to the repulsive cell adhesion of the chorion and differentiated specifically into neural cells and cardiomyocytes. In contrast, dissolved chorion extracellular matrix (ECM) conferred enhanced cell attachment on it, suggesting that a unique property of the zebrafish chorion with nanoporous structure appears to be responsible for the simple and controllable embryoid formation for stem cell differentiation. These results indicate that chorions from fertilized zebrafish eggs may be used as an extracellular matrix alternative and applied for stem cell differentiation to specific cell lineages.
Download the full text: PDF | HTML
