Photobiomodulation Can Enhance Stem Cell Viability in Cochlea with Auditory Neuropathy but Does Not Restore Hearing

Figure 8

Mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) transplanted into the cochlea in the secondary neurodegeneration model proliferated extensively but lacked differentiation capacity and malignancy. Stemness of the transplanted green fluorescent protein (GFP)-tagged mESCs following combination therapy was investigated by the expression of NANOG, a marker of ESC pluripotency or self-renewal function and malignancy in the KM-SC-PBM group. The absence of NANOG expression in transplanted GFP-positive cells in the cochlea after combination therapy suggested that mESC pluripotency was lost after this treatment. Scale bar = 20 µM.