Separation of epidermal stem cells from other populations in suspensions of epidermal cells by sorting is hampered by a present lack of specific surface markers of this cell type. To address this issue we applied CCE combined with immunocytochemical phenotyping. On the basis of expression profiles for keratins (10, 14, and 19), nucleostemin, galectin-1 and epitopes reactive for this adhesion/growth-regulatory tissue lectin we identified a fraction of very small cells originating from the basal layer. The results demonstrated that CCE has potential merit for separation of epidermal cells to yield a population likely enriched in stem cells.

Institute of Animal Physiology and Genetics Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic Libĕchov Czech Republic

Functional differences between neonatal and adult fibroblasts and keratinocytes: Donor age affects epithelial-mesenchymal crosstalk in vitro