The effect of human mesenchymal stem cell-conditioned medium (MSC-CM) on neurite outgrowth from explants of chick dorsal root ganglia (DRG) was measured using a neuronal analysis algorithm. Images of neurite outgrowth along with computer analysis overlays are shown for untreated (panel A) and MSC-CM (panel B) respectively. The algorithm was optimised to measure a number of parameters including total neurite area (panel C) and mean neurite length (panel D). Data is the meanąSEM of 4 donor experiments.

Neurite outgrowth

The above assay is a good example of more complex image analysis that can be achieved using High Content Analysis. In this example, we are using chick neurites as a bioassay for the characterisation of human mesenchymal stem cells. The rich number of biomarker assays that can be done using HCA makes it an ideal technique for the assessment of stem cell function.