hESC- and hiPSC-derived Schwann cells are molecularly comparable and functionally equivalent.

Establishing robust models of human myelinating Schwann cells is critical for studying peripheral nerve injury and disease. Stem cell differentiation has emerged as a key human cell model and disease motivating development of Schwann cell differentiation protocols. Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) are considered the ideal pluripotent cell but ethical concerns regarding their use have propelled the popularity of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). Given that the equivalence of hESCs and hiPSCs remains controversial, we sought to compare the molecular and functional equivalence of hESC- and hiPSC-derived Schwann cells generated with our previously reported protocol. We identified only modest transcriptome differences by RNA sequencing and insignificant proteome differences by antibody array. Additionally, both cell types comparably improved nerve regeneration and function in a chronic denervation and regeneration animal model. Our findings demonstrate that Schwann cells derived from hESCs and hiPSCs with our protocol are molecularly comparable and functionally equivalent.