Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 14 6 2015 11 29 596 604 EN Hassan Rafieemehr Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, School of Para Medicine, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran AND Department of Immunology, Blood Transfusion Research Center, High Institute for Research and Education in Transfusion Medicine, Tehran, Iran Maryam Kheyrandish Department of Immunology, Blood Transfusion Research Center, High Institute for Research and Education in Transfusion Medicine, Tehran, Iran Masoud Soleimani Department of Stem Cell Biology, Stem Cell Technology Research Center, Tehran, Iran 2015 10 20 2015 10 20 Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system. The aim of this study was to investigate the neuroprotective effects of transplanted human umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stromal cells (UCB-MSC) derived neural progenitor cell (MDNPC) in EAE, an experimental model of MS. To initiate neuronal differentiation of UCB-MSCs, the pre-induction medium was removed and replaced with induction media containing retinoic acid, b FGF, h EGF, NGF, IBMX and ascorbic acid for one week. The expression of neural genes was examined in comparison to control group by real-time PCR assay. Then, experimental autoimmune encephalitis (EAE) was induced using myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG, 35-55 peptides) in 24 C57BL/6 mice. After induction, the mice were divided in four groups (n=6) as follows: healthy, PBS, UCB-MSCs and MDNPC, respectively. At the end of the study, disease status in all the groups was analyzed using hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) staining of brain sections. We found that UCB-MSCs exhibit neuronal differentiation potential in vitro and transplanted MDNPC lowered clinical score and reduced CNS leukocyte infiltration compared to untreated mice. Our results showed that MDNPC from UCB may be a proper candidate for regenerative therapy in MS and other neurodegenerative diseases. https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/613 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/613/577