The capacity of neural crest-derived stem cells for ocular repair

Abstract

Whether it is due to a particular epigenetic signature, or some other component of an embryonic differentiation program, accumulating evidence indicates that the origins of a stem cell has a profound impact on the potential of a tissue to regenerate and repair. Here, we focus on Müller glia, long considered the stem cells of the retina, and their surprising derivation from the neural crest. Whether the multipotent properties of a subset of Müller glia is associated with their neural crest origin remains a tantalizing possibility. Birth Defects Research (Part C) 102:299–308, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.