São Paulo State University

3 ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN JoVE

Neuroscience

Short-Term Free-Floating Slice Cultures from the Adult Human Brain

Artur Fernandes^1,2, Niele Dias Mendes^1,3, Glaucia Maria Almeida¹, Giovanna Orlovski Nogueira¹, Carla de Moraes Machado⁴, Jose de Anchieta de Castro Horta-Junior⁴, João Alberto Assirati Junior⁵, Norberto Garcia-Cairasco², Luciano Neder³, Adriano Sebollela¹

¹Department of Biochemistry and Immunology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, ²Department of Physiology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, ³Department of Pathology and Forensic Medicine, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, ⁴Department of Anatomy, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, ⁵Clinical Hospital at the Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo

A protocol to prepare free-floating slice cultures from adult human brain is presented. The protocol is a variation of the widely used slice culture method using membrane inserts. It is simple, cost-effective, and recommended for running short-term assays aimed to unravel mechanisms of neurodegeneration behind age-associated brain diseases.

Developmental Biology

Differentiation of Porcine Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (piPSCs) into Neural Progenitor Cells (NPCs)

Lucas Simões Machado¹, Kaiana Recchia^1,2, Naira Caroline Godoy Pieri², Ramon Cesar Botigelli^2,3, Raquel Vasconcelos Guimarães de Castro², Jéssica Brunhara Cruz¹, Laís Vicari de Figueiredo Pessôa², Fabiana Fernandes Bressan^1,2

¹Department of Surgery, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, University of São Paulo, ²Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Animal Sciences and Food Engineering, University of São Paulo, ³Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University

This protocol describes a method for chemical differentiation and culture of neural progenitor cells derived from porcine induced pluripotent stem cells (piPSCs).

Biology

Collection and Long-Term Maintenance of Leaf-Cutting Ants (Atta) in Laboratory Conditions

Bianca Raissa Nogueira¹, Amanda Aparecida de Oliveira¹, Janiele Pereira da Silva², Odair Correa Bueno¹

¹Institute of Biosciences, Department of General and Applied Biology, Laboratory of Leaf-cutting Ants, São Paulo State University, ²Institute of Psychology, Laboratory Walter Hugo Cunha, São Paulo University

Here, a protocol is described to successfully collect and maintain healthy Atta (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) ant colonies in laboratory conditions. Additionally, different nest types and configurations are detailed together with possible experimental procedures.