Abstract: The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of cell density on the survival, proliferation and differentiation of human neural stem cells in the primary culture. Combination of EGF, bFGF and LIF can stimulate the proliferation of human neural stem cells remarkably. When these growth factors were removed, and 10% fetal bovine serum was added into culture media, the human neural stem cells could differentiate into neurons, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes. There were no proliferation and neurospheres formation in low-density ( cells < 10000/mL) culture. From this experiment, we can draw the conclusion that the human neural stem cells from the fetal brain has the ability of self-renewing and multiple differentiational potential, and moderate cells density will benefit its survival and proliferation.

Key words: neural stem cell, proliferation, differentiation