T. Tabata et al., A reliable method for culture of dissociated mouse cerebellar cells enriched for Purkinje neurons, J NEUROSC M, 104(1), 2000, pp. 45-53
The cerebellar Purkinje neuron (PN) serves as an important model in studies
of neuronal development in the mammalian central nervous system. Dissociat
ed PN preparations maintained in an in-vitro environment with simplified ce
llular and biochemical conditions can facilitate molecular analyses of neur
onal development. Here we describe a reliable method to prepare dissociated
cultures of mouse cerebellar neurons maintained with a serum-free, Dulbecc
o's modified Eagle's medium/F-12 nutrient-based medium, which facilitates P
N survival and dendritic differentiation. The survival of mouse PNs in this
culture was maximized when cerebellar cells were (1) taken from prenatal a
nimals, (2) dissociated with papain, and (3) seeded at a density of 5 000 0
00 cells/ml or higher. Dissociated PNs prepared by our method from mice of
embryonic day 18 (E 18) reproduced several morphological and electrophysiol
ogical changes seen in intact postnatal rodents with similar time-courses.
Therefore, our culture method offers a useful model for investigating molec
ular mechanisms underlying postnatal neuronal development. (C) 2000 Elsevie
r Science B.V. All rights reserved.