Influence of low oxygen
Cell culturing under standard conditions involves an atmospheric oxygen concentration of 20%. For a number of specific applications it is necessary to define the level of the supplied oxygen. In rodents, reduction of the O2-tension to more physiological levels between 3-9% has a positive effect on NPCs derived from fetal hippocampus and mesencephalon with regard to neuronal survival, proliferation and (dopaminergic) differentiation including neuritogenesis.We are currently investigating the effect of low oxygen concentrations (3-5%) on cell growth, metabolic activity and neuronal, especially dopaminergic differentiation of human mesencephalic NPCs in order to improve their suitability for study of differentiation-related cell signaling, drug testing and cell replacement therapy.