RNA-seq of iPSC-derived astrocytes that are capable of exerting pro-maturational effect on synaptic networks

Astrocytes interact closely with neurons and facilitate neuronal maturation and function by providing trophic support, regulating the extracellular environment, and engaging in a variety of inter-cellular signalling mechanisms. We have described the generation of human astrocytes and neurons from a common cortical progenitor pool, thereby recapitulating aspects of in vivo development. Firstly, we show that the iPSC-derived astrocytes exhibit many of the key molecular and functional hallmarks predicted of astrocytes. Secondly, we provide functional and transcriptomic analyses of the astrocytes’ capacity to interact with neurons both through rapid regulation of ongoing synaptic transmission as well as exerting pro-maturational effects on the synaptic networks. Transcriptional analysis included the comparison of the present RNA-seq of iPSC-derived astrocytes to other iPSC-derived astrocyte datasets as well as fetal and adult human astrocytes. We investigated differences in gene expression between our maturation-enhancing iPSC-astrocytes and iPSC-astrocytes previously shown to be unable to promote synaptic network maturation. By integrating transcriptomic data, functional genomic annotations and protein-protein interaction resources we support that astrocytic extracellular signalling is important for the ability of astrocytes to mediate functional neuronal maturation. This work provides a foundation for future investigations into astrocyte-neuron interactions in human health and disease.