Human iPSC-Derived Neurons, Astrocytes, and Microglia

The central nervous system (CNS) encompasses the spinal cord and brain, which includes neurons and glia cells. The signaling cells of the CNS, neurons carry electrical imposes to neighboring neurons, while astrocytes and microglia provide support and protection to the neurons. These cells are vital for researchers investigating a variety of diseases and disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson’s disease, and more.

At MilliporeSigma/Merck, we offer an extensive collection of high-purity, healthy control iPSC-derived human neurons, astrocytes, and microglia. The cells mature rapidly, simplifying your experimental workflows and enabling you to model various aspects of the CNS. Our portfolio encompasses reliable culture supplements and media, as well as a diverse range of subtype-specific CNS cell models. This collection includes spinal motor neurons, midbrain dopaminergic neurons, cortical glutamatergic neurons, cortical GABAergic neurons, and striatal medium spiny neurons, and glial cells such as cortical astrocytes, spinal astrocytes, and microglia:
• Spinal cord lineage motor neurons that are representative of lower motor neurons found in the ventral horn of the spinal cord. These neurons express FOXP1 and MAP2 at DIV7 with spontaneous firing by DIV14.
• Midbrain dopaminergic neurons that express MAP2/TH at DIV 14 and release dopamine as their primary neurotransmitter.
• Forebrain glutamatergic neurons that are representative of various deep layers of the cortex (Layers V and VI). These neurons express FOXP2 and MAP2 at DIV7 with synchronous firing by DIV21.
• Cortical GABAergic neurons that release GABA as the primary neurotransmitter and express GABA and MAP2 at DIV7 with synchronous firing by DIV21.
• Spiny striatal GABAergic neurons that express GABA/DARPP32/MAP2 at DIV 7 with spontaneous firing by DIV 21.
• Forebrain cortical astrocytes that express GFAP at DIV 7 and spinal cord astrocytes that express GFAP at DIV 7.
• Hematopoietic lineage microglia that express U1 and IBA1 at DIV 7.

With these cell lines you can grow monocultures, co-cultures, and tri-cultures of iPSC-derived neurons and microglia to obtain more physiologically relevant data from your cell culture experiments. We also provide expert-backed protocols that describe how to perform co-cultures and tri-cultures that include a combination of motor neurons, astrocytes, and microglia and can be used for a variety of assays, including electrical neuron activity. When grown together in either two or three dimensions, this combination of CNS cells presents new complexities that may be missed when cultured separately, helping to accelerate discoveries in your drug discovery applications.