Parthenogenetic stem cell brain development in mouse embryos

In the present study, the distribution patterns of PG donor cells in the brains of mouse chimeras generated by the aggregation and ESC methods were investigated and compared at embryonic stage E14.5. Neuronal and glial cell frequency analyses were performed to explain the different colonization of PG stem cells in the chimeras. There is no significant difference in the relative neuronal and astrocyte frequency between the aggregation and ESC chimeras. Both chimera types do not differ in the number of neurons and supporting cells differentiated from PG donor cells. The potential of PG stem cells to form functional dopaminergic neurons was analyzed comparatively in the two chimeric types. Dopaminergic neurons derived from PG donor cells were detected in both chimeric types. As for the number of neurons and astrocytes, no significant difference was observed for the number of dopaminergic neurons between aggregation and ESC chimeras.