Rat Oligodendrocyte Precursor Cells

Description

Rat Oligodendrocyte Precursor Cells (OPCs) are derived from the cerebral cortex of healthy neonatal Sprague-Dawley rats and cryopreserved at early passages to maintain lineage fidelity. These neural precursors exhibit bipolar or multipolar morphology, grow adherently in vitro and represent a critical intermediate stage in the oligodendrocyte lineage. They primarily differentiate into oligodendrocytes—the myelinating cells of the central nervous system (CNS)—under normal conditions. Rat OPCs express lineage-specific markers such as NG2, PDGFRα, Olig2, and A2B5. They proliferate in response to PDGF and bFGF. These cells play a central role in central nervous system (CNS) myelination and are essential for maintaining axonal conductivity. OPCs are widely used to study myelin formation, remyelination, and the pathophysiology of demyelinating diseases like multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, and perinatal white matter injury.