摘要
Objective To review recent studies concerning the origins of skin-derived precursors （SKPs）, their differentiation characteristics, and their potential application in neural regenerative medicine. Data sources Data were retrieved from studies reported in PubMed published between April, 1974 and June, 2012. The search terms used were ＂skin-derived precursors＂, ＂stem cells＂, and ＂neural diseases＂. Study selection Articles were included in the review if they were relevant to SKPs as stem cells, as well as their applications in neural regenerative medicine, such as in the treatment of spinal cord injury, Parkinson＇s disease, spinal muscular atrophy and Shah-Waardenburg syndrome. Results SKPs are a novel population of neural crest-derived precursors that arise during embryogenesis and persist into adulthood. They can generate both neural cells and mesodermal lineage cells （including smooth muscle cells and adipocytes）. Compared with other stem cells, SKPs are abundant in adult skin, can differentiate easily into neural cells, and are not associated with any ethical controversies. Conclusion SKPs may provide an alternative source of stem cells to embryonic stem cells for transplantation therapy for neurological diseases.
Objective To review recent studies concerning the origins of skin-derived precursors （SKPs）, their differentiation characteristics, and their potential application in neural regenerative medicine. Data sources Data were retrieved from studies reported in PubMed published between April, 1974 and June, 2012. The search terms used were ＂skin-derived precursors＂, ＂stem cells＂, and ＂neural diseases＂. Study selection Articles were included in the review if they were relevant to SKPs as stem cells, as well as their applications in neural regenerative medicine, such as in the treatment of spinal cord injury, Parkinson＇s disease, spinal muscular atrophy and Shah-Waardenburg syndrome. Results SKPs are a novel population of neural crest-derived precursors that arise during embryogenesis and persist into adulthood. They can generate both neural cells and mesodermal lineage cells （including smooth muscle cells and adipocytes）. Compared with other stem cells, SKPs are abundant in adult skin, can differentiate easily into neural cells, and are not associated with any ethical controversies. Conclusion SKPs may provide an alternative source of stem cells to embryonic stem cells for transplantation therapy for neurological diseases.
基金
This study was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China （No. 30973092 and No. 81178147）, ＂Xingwei Project＂ Key Personal Medical Research Foundation of Health Department of Jiangsu Province （No. RC201156）, ＂Six Categories of Key Person＂ Research Foundation of Jiangsu Province （No. 069）, Program Sponsored for Scientific Innovation Research of College Graduate in Jiangsu Province （No. CXZZ12 0583）, and Project Funded by the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions （No. JX10231801）.
