简介：AIM:ToinvestigatetheroleofBrn-3bindifferentiationprocessofstemcellsderivedfromretinalMiillercellsintotheganglioncell.METHODS:ThepassageculturemethodofMiillercellsfromretinaofnewbornSpragueDawleyratswascarriedoutbyrepeatedincompletepancreaticenzymedigestionmethod.Thecellsweredetectedbyfluorescenceactivatedcellsorter(FACS),immunohistochemistrytechnologyandreversetranscription-polymerasechainreaction(RT-PCR)todeterminethepurity.Thethirdpassageofcellswasinducedintheserum-freededifferentiationmedium.TheexpressionofthespecificmarkersKi-67andnestinofretinalstemcellswasmeasuredbyRT-PCRandWesternblot.Thecellproliferationofretinalstemcellswasdetectedby5-Ethynyl-2’-deoxyuridine(Edu)staining.Thecellswererandomlydividedinto5groupsasfollows:groupA:Brn-3bsiRNAgroup;groupB:Brn-3bcontrolsiRNAgroup;groupC:pGC-Brn-3b-greenfluorescentprotein(GFP)group;groupD:pGC-GFPgroup;groupE:controlgroup(withoutanyhandling).ThepurifiedMullercellswereculturedfor3-7d,then,thepercentageofganglioncellswascountedbyimmunofluorescencestaining.RESULTS:FACSdemonstratedthepurityofretinalMullercellswasmore97.44%.Afewsphericalcellspheresappeared.Immunofluorescencestainingshowedthatstemcellswithinthesphereswerepositiveforretinalstemcell-specificmarkersnestin(redfluorescence,92.94%±6.48%)andKi-67(greenfluorescence,85.96%±6.04%).Meanwhile,RT-PCRanalysisshowedcellspheresintheculturetohaveexpressedabatteryoftranscriptscharacteristicofstemcellssuchasnestinandKi-67,whichwereabsentintheMullercells.WesternblotanalysisfurtherconfirmedtheexpressionofnestinandKi-67inthecellspheresbutnotintheMullercells.Edustainingshowedmostofthenucleiwithinthecellsphereswerestainedred(82.80%±6.65%),suggestingthenewcellsphereshadthecapacityforeffectiveproliferation.ThestatisticsresultshowedthedifferencebetweenBrn-3bsiRNAgroupand