Magnetic graphene oxide nanoparticles boost the neuronal differentiation of neural progenitor cells

Abstract

Post-central nervous system injury, the endogenous repair and mobilization of neural stem cells are insufficient, necessitating the reliance on exogenous cell transplantation as the predominant repair and replacement strategy. The behavior and differentiation fate of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are highly susceptible to external stimuli, including the cell culture matrix and physical electromagnetic signals. In this study, we innovatively utilize magnetic graphene oxide composite nanoparticles to regulate the proliferation and neural lineage differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural progenitor cells (iPSC-derived hNPCs). Our results reveal that a specific concentration of magnetic graphene oxide effectively maintains stemness properties, promotes cell proliferation, and preferentially directs differentiation toward neuronal lineages under induced differentiation conditions. Additionally, this treatment upregulated the expression of synaptic-related proteins while concurrently reducing the astrocytic differentiation ratio. These findings provide a novel materials-based strategy for optimizing hNPCs in vitro culture and directed differentiation systems.