Experimental Feasibility Study of TRAIL Gene Transfected into Neural Stem Cells.

Aim: To investigate the feasibility of transfecting the TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) gene into neural stem cells (NSCs) in vitro, and explore whether NSCs retain their proliferative and differentiated activities after transfection.

Material and methods: NSCs were obtained from fetal mouse brains, cultured in serum-free medium and identified by immunofluorescence staining. Lentivirus vector solution containing green fluorescent protein (GFP) gene was added to the NSCs based on the multiplicity of infection (MOI). The transfection efficiency of GFP was observed using a fluorescence microscope and detected by flow cytometry. NSCs were transfected with GFP-TRAIL fusion genes mediated by the optimized MOI lentivirus solution. The expression of TRAIL proteins in NSCs was detected by immunofluorescence and Western blot analysis. The differentiation of NSCs were induced and identified by immunofluorescence staining.

Results: The optimal MOI value of virus transfection was 10, resulting in a transfection rate was higher than 90%. GFP fluorescence could be observed at 24 hours after transfecting GFP-TRAIL genes into NSCs with an MOI of 10, and reached the maximum value at 72 hours. Immunofluorescence and Western-blot assays confirmed that GFP-TRAIL fusion proteins could be continuously expressed stably. Transfected NSCs could differentiate into neurons and glial cells without any statistically significant difference compared to the non-transfected group.

Conclusion: Neural stem cells retained their proliferative and differentiated potential after being transfected with the TRAIL gene while sustainably expressing TRAIL protein.