STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit
Serum-free maturation kit for generating mature cortical-type astrocytes from hPSC-derived astrocyte precursors
Request Pricing
Thank you for your interest in this product. Please provide us with your contact information and your local representative will contact you with a customized quote. Where appropriate, they can also assist you with a(n):
Estimated delivery time for your area
Product sample or exclusive offer
In-lab demonstration
- STEMdiff™ Neural Rosette Selection Reagent
Enzyme-free reagent for the selective detachment of neural rosettes
- STEMdiff™ SMADi Neural Induction Kit
Serum-free medium kit for highly efficient SMAD inhibition-mediated neural induction of human ES and iPS cells
- STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Differentiation Kit
Differentiation kit for the generation of astrocyte precursors from human ES and iPS cell-derived neural progenitor cells
- Human iPSC-Derived Neural Progenitor Cells
Frozen human neural progenitor cells differentiated from the human induced pluripotent stem cell line, SCTi003-A
-
Labeling Antibodies
Compatible antibodies for purity assessment of isolated cells
Overview
Data Figures

Figure 1. Schematic for STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Kit Using the Embryoid Body Protocol for Neural Induction
Astrocyte precursors can be generated from hPSC-derived NPCs in 20 days after selecting neural rosettes from replated embryoid bodies. The resulting cells can then be matured using STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit. Snowflakes indicate optional cryopreservation timepoints. hPSC = human pluripotent stem cell; NPC = neural progenitor cell; EB = embryoid body.

Figure 2. Schematic for STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Kit Using the Monolayer Protocol for Neural Induction
Astrocyte precursors can be generated from hPSC-derived NPC monolayers in 21 days after three single-cell passages. The resulting cells can then be matured using STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit. Snowflakes indicate optional cryopreservation timepoints. hPSC = human pluripotent stem cell; NPC = neural progenitor cell.

Figure 3. Pure Populations of Astrocytes Are Generated Using STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Differentiation Kit and Matured Using STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit or STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Maturation Kit
NPCs were generated from a variety of hPSC cell lines maintained in mTeSR™ Plus using STEMdiff™ SMADi Neural Induction Kit. Using the embryoid body protocol, the NPCs were differentiated using STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Differentiation Kit for 3 weeks and matured using STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Maturation Kit or STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit for an additional 3 weeks. (A) Representative images display astrocytes derived from the iPSC line SCTi003-A. Nuclei are labeled with Hoechst (gray). The resulting cultures contain a highly pure population of astrocytes expressing astrocyte identity marker GFAP (magenta) and mature astrocyte marker S100B (cyan). (B) The percentage expression of GFAP, S100B, and DCX in the resulting cultures, derived from 3 ESC (H1, H7, and H9) and 4 iPSC (WLS-1C, STiPS-R038, STiPS-M001, and SCTi003-A) lines, were quantified after culture in either STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Maturation Kit (‘Serum-Containing’) or STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit (‘Serum-Free’). Each point is a biological replicate (averaged across the technical replicates). Different symbols represent different experiment setups. Numbers are % positive of total Hoechst-positive cells. Normality was determined by Anderson-Darling test and statistics were calculated by the unpaired t-test or Mann-Whitney test. * p ≤ 0.05 and *** p ≤ 0.001. NPC = neural progenitor cell; hPSC = human pluripotent stem cell; ESC = embryonic stem cell; iPSC = induced pluripotent stem cell.

Figure 4. Astrocytes Maintained in STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit and STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Maturation Kit Are Transcriptionally Similar
Bulk RNA-seq data from hPSCs maintained in mTeSR™ Plus; neural progenitor cells, and hPSC-derived forebrain neuron precursors maintained for 7 days in STEMdiff™ Forebrain Neuron Differentiation Kit; hPSC-derived forebrain neurons after 14 days in STEMdiff™ Forebrain Neuron Maturation Kit; hPSC-derived astrocyte precursor cells after 3 weeks in STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Differentiation Kit; hPSC-derived astrocytes matured in STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Maturation Kit or in STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit. Principal component analysis was performed on this data. The astrocytes maintained in both STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit and STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Maturation Kit cluster together, demonstrating the similar global gene expression patterns between the resulting astrocytes after maturation with either of these two kits when generated from various hPSC cell lines. The spread of cell types along the PC2 y-axis and overlap of the astrocyte precursor cell group with the forebrain neuron group demonstrates that the precursor cells pass through a neurogenic fate before reaching their gliogenic gate. The top genes for the PC2 top loading are GFAP, COL14A1, and CD44. hPSCs = human pluripotent stem cells, NPCs = neural progenitor cells.

Figure 5. Astrocytes Generated with STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Kits Modulate Internal Calcium Concentration After ATP and Glutamate Treatments
Astrocytes generated from iPSC lines WLS-1C and SCTi003-A were matured in either STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Maturation Kit or STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit. The astrocytes were kept in BrainPhys™ Imaging Optimized Neuronal Medium to reduce the background fluorescence in the images and loaded with the fluorescent calcium indicator Fluo-4AM. (A) The WLS-1C-derived astrocytes were then exposed to 3 µM ATP and (B) the SCTi003-A-derived astrocytes were exposed to 25 µM glutamate. The calcium response to the treatments were captured for 1 or 2 minutes total at 500 ms intervals. Representative time-lapse image series shows the calcium response at various pre- and post-treatment timepoints. Orange arrows identify an astrocyte that increases in fluorescence after treatment and the blue arrows identify an astrocyte wherein calcium fluctuated from increased to decreased within the representative time series. iPSC = induced pluripotent stem cell.

Figure 6. hPSC-Derived Neurons, Astrocytes, and Microglia Can Be Tri-Cultured to Model Cell-Cell Interactions In Vitro
Astrocyte precursor cells from the ESC line H7 were maintained in STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit for 3 weeks and passaged weekly. Hematopoietic progenitor cells from the iPSC line WLS-1C were thawed into STEMdiff™ Microglia Differentiation Kit for 24 days. Forebrain neuron precursors from the iPSC line STiPS-R038 were thawed and maintained in STEMdiff™ Forebrain Neuron Maturation Kit for 1 week. After the neurons were matured for 1 week, the astrocytes were passaged on top of the neurons at a 1:1 seeding density and maintained overnight in the STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit. The next day, 24-day-old microglia were plated on top of the neuron and astrocyte co-culture in the tri-culture medium. For more detailed instructions on the tri-culture protocol, please refer to the full protocol. (A) 30-day-old tri-culture composed of (B) hPSC-derived class III β-tubulin-positive forebrain neurons, (C) GFAP-positive astrocytes, and (D) IBA1-positive microglia. (E) Nuclei are labeled with Hoechst. The microglia extend their processes to interact with the neurons and astrocytes. ESC = embryonic stem cell; iPSC = induced pluripotent stem cell.

Figure 7. Tri-Culture Containing hPSC-Derived Neurons, Astrocytes, and Microglia Recovers from Wound Injury
Astrocyte precursor cells from the ESC line H7 were maintained in STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit for 3 weeks and passaged weekly. Hematopoietic progenitor cells from the iPSC line WLS-1C containing a stable transfection to express GFP were thawed into STEMdiff™ Microglia Differentiation Kit for 24 days. Forebrain neuron precursors from the iPSC line STiPS-R038 were thawed and maintained in STEMdiff™ Forebrain Neuron Maturation Kit for 1 week. After the neurons were matured for 1 week, the astrocytes were passaged on top of the neurons at a 1:1 seeding density and maintained overnight in the STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit. The next day, 24-day-old microglia were plated on top of the neuron and astrocyte co-culture in the tri-culture medium. For more detailed instructions on the tri-culture protocol, please refer to the full protocol. On Day 7, the culture was scratched with the Incucyte® WoundMaker and the recovery process was captured every 12 hours with the Incucyte® SX5 instrument. (A) The culture was fixed and stained for GFAP (cyan) and βIII-TUB (magenta) after 48 hours of injury. (B) Representative phase images of the same area (see insets) within the wound pre- and post-scratch with the hours post-injury labelled on-top of the images are shown. The GFP-expressing microglia (green) are seen interacting with a cluster of forebrain neurons labelled with black arrows. The same cluster of forebrain neurons labelled with the black arrows expresses βIII-TUB and displays neurite re-growth (white arrow). ESC = embryonic stem cell; iPSC = induced pluripotent stem cell; GFP = green fluorescent protein.
Protocols and Documentation
Find supporting information and directions for use in the Product Information Sheet or explore additional protocols below.
Applications
This product is designed for use in the following research area(s) as part of the highlighted workflow stage(s). Explore these workflows to learn more about the other products we offer to support each research area.
Resources and Publications
Educational Materials (15)
Related Products
- BrainPhys™ Neuronal Medium
Serum-free neurophysiological basal medium for improved neuronal function
- STEMdiff™ Forebrain Neuron Differentiation ...
Differentiation kit for the generation of neuronal precursors from human ES and iPS cell-derived neural progenitor cells
- STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Differentiation Kit
Differentiation kit for the generation of astrocyte precursors from human ES and iPS cell-derived neural progenitor cells
- STEMdiff™ Microglia Differentiation Kit
Differentiation kit for the generation of microglia precursors from human ES and iPS cell-derived hematopoietic progenitor cells
Item added to your cart

STEMdiff™ Astrocyte Serum-Free Maturation Kit
PRODUCTS ARE FOR RESEARCH USE ONLY AND NOT INTENDED FOR HUMAN OR ANIMAL DIAGNOSTIC OR THERAPEUTIC USES UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON QUALITY AT STEMCELL, REFER TO WWW.STEMCELL.COM/COMPLIANCE.