I am looking for a marker (other than Nestin) to stain neonatal (specifically postnatal day 20 pups) and adult hippocampal and sub ventricular zone neural/stem progenitor cells (NSPCs). I read about SOX-2 and Musashi-1 and I was wondering if either one is better over another? Apart from these are there any other markers that I could potentially use?
SOX2 is better - you will get a good antibody easily, and the marker itself is very conventional. Neurofilament is another marker you can use but it is harder to find a good antibody, and the staining will not be nuclear.
Have you tried DCX (doublecortin)? It's expressed by neuronal precursors in the hippocampus as well as by migrating neuroblasts born in the subventricullar zone.
Hey Marimelia,
Thank you so much for your suggestion. I am currently using DCX to mark early neuronal precursors and it works well for us. I was wondering if I could stain progenitors that are not yet early neurons/glia. Hence, I thought that DCX would not be a good marker for that purpose. Let me know what you think about this.
Thank you again.
Hi Yashika
I believe SOX2 is your best choice indeed, as it's an earlier marker when compared to DCX, that will appear later on, when cells are committed to neuronal fate.
Good luck!
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