Estrogen stimulates the neuronal differentiation of human umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cells (CD34-)

This study evaluated the effects of estrogen on the neuronal differentiation of human umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cells. Human umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cells cultured in a neuronal differentiation medium containing dimethylsulfoxide and butylated hydroxyanisole showed the expression of the neuronal cell-specific protein marker, beta-tubulin III. The estrogen treatment increased the proportion of neurons and neurite branching but reduced the mean neurite length. The relative expression of neurotropic factors such as brain-derived neurotropic factor, glial cell derived neurotropic factor, nerve growth factor, neurotrophin-3, and growth-associated protein 43 were higher in the estrogen-treated group than in the nontreated and estrogen receptor antagonist (ICI-182,780)-treated groups. These results suggest that estrogen stimulates the differentiation of neurons derived from human umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cells through the gene expression of neurotrophic factors.