Multipotent Schwann cell precursors generate steroid-producing cells of the adrenal cortex and chromaffin cells of the adrenal medulla

Multipotent stem cells are considered as promising biological tools for regenerative medicine, and transcriptome analysis of these cells is fundamental for identifying new factors controlling proliferation versus differentiation. To obtain a comprehensive characterization of adrenal progenitors, we have developed an analytical pipeline relying on flow cytometric sorting of living cells followed by RNA sequencing. This analysis showed that two distinct populations of Nestin-positive progenitors are located in the adrenal cortex and medulla, respectively. Though 1039 genes were differentially regulated, both populations showed Schwann cell precursor properties suggesting both populations to be neural crest-derived. Overall design: mRNA profiles of FACS sorted Nestin-positive progenitor cells from the adrenal cortex and medulla.