TY - JOUR T1 - Transdifferentiation of Human Umbilical Cord-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Dopaminergic Neurons in a Three-Dimensional Culture TT - JF - BCN JO - BCN VL - 13 IS - 5 UR - http://bcn.iums.ac.ir/article-1-1873-en.html Y1 - 2022 SP - 625 EP - 636 KW - Differentiation KW - Dopaminergic neurons KW - Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells KW - In vitro N2 - Introduction: The induction of human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (HUC-MSCs) toward dopaminergic neurons is a major challenge in tissue engineering and experimental and clinical treatments of various neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson disease. This study aims to differentiate HUC-MSCs into dopaminergic neuron-like cells. Methods: Following the isolation and characterization of HUC-MSCs, they were transferred to Matrigel-coated plates and incubated with a cocktail of dopaminergic neuronal differentiation factors. The capacity of differentiation into dopaminergic neuron-like cells in 2-dimensional culture and on Matrigel was assessed by real-time polymerase chain reaction, immunocytochemistry, and high-performance liquid chromatography. Results: Our results showed that dopaminergic neuronal markers’ transcript and protein levels were significantly increased on the Matrigel differentiated cells compared to 2D culture plates. Conclusion: Overall, the results of this study suggest that HUC-MSCs can successfully differentiate toward dopaminergic neuron-like cells on Matrigel, having great potential for the treatment of dopaminergic neuron-related diseases. M3 10.32598/bcn.2021.973.3 ER -