Expression of hyaluronan and the hyaluronan-binding proteoglycans neurocan, aggrecan, and versican by neural stem cells and neural cells derived from embryonic stem cells.

We have examined the expression and localization patterns of hyaluronan and hyaluronan-binding chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans in neural stem cells and differentiated neural cells derived from mouse embryonic stem cells. Expression of proteoglycans and hyaluronan was weak in the SSEA1-positive embryonic stem cells but increased noticeably after retinoic acid induction to nestin-positive neural stem cells. After subsequent plating, the hyaluronan-binding chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans aggrecan, neurocan, and versican are expressed by cells in both the astrocytic and neuronal lineages. During the time period that hyaluronan was present, it co-localized with each of the hyaluronan-binding proteoglycans studied and was found to be clearly associated with beta-III tubulin-expressing neurons and oligodendrocytes expressing the O4 sulfatide marker. Although proteoglycan expression levels increased to varying degrees following neural differentiation, they did not change noticably during the following 2 weeks in culture, but there was a significant decrease in hyaluronan expression. Our studies therefore demonstrate the expression by neural stem cells and neural cells derived from them of hyaluronan and its associated proteoglycans, thereby providing a necessary foundation for integrating their specific properties into developing strategies for therapeutic applications.