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Various types of therapeutic cells could be considered for use in aligned collagen-based engineered neural tissue (EngNT), including Schwann cells and their precursors, which can be derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). Using Schwann cell precursors may have practical advantages over mature Schwann cells as they expand readily in vitro and involve a shorter differentiation period. However, the performance of each cell type needs to be tested in EngNT. By adapting established protocols, hiPSCs were differentiated into Schwann cell precursors and Schwann cells, with distinctive molecular profiles confirmed using immunocytochemistry and RT-qPCR. For the first time, both cell types were incorporated into EngNT using gel aspiration\u2013ejection, a technique used to align and simultaneously stabilise the cellular hydrogels. Both types of cellular constructs supported and guided aligned neurite outgrowth from adult rat dorsal root ganglion neurons in vitro. Initial experiments in a rat model of nerve gap injury demonstrated the extent to which the engrafted cells survived after 2 weeks and indicated that both types of hiPSC-derived cells supported the infiltration of host neurons, Schwann cells and endothelial cells. In summary, we show that human Schwann cell precursors promote infiltrating endogenous axons in a model of peripheral nerve injury to a greater degree than their terminally differentiated Schwann cell counterparts.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/bioengineering12090904","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,25]],"date-time":"2025-08-25T00:10:36Z","timestamp":1756080636000},"page":"904","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Engineered Neural Tissue (EngNT) Containing Human iPSC-Derived Schwann Cell Precursors Promotes Axon Growth in a Rat Model of Peripheral Nerve Injury"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4915-9496","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Rebecca A.","family":"Powell","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"UCL Centre for Nerve Engineering, Department of Pharmacology, UCL School of Pharmacy, University College London, London WC1N 1AX, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3480-5865","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Emily A.","family":"Atkinson","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"UCL Centre for Nerve Engineering, Department of Pharmacology, UCL School of Pharmacy, University College London, London WC1N 1AX, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3325-5400","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Poppy O.","family":"Smith","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"UCL Centre for Nerve Engineering, Department of Pharmacology, UCL School of Pharmacy, University College London, London WC1N 1AX, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3825-7675","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Rickie","family":"Patani","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"The Francis Crick Institute, London NW1 1AT, UK"},{"name":"Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3BG, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Parmjit S.","family":"Jat","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"MRC Prion Unit at UCL, UCL Institute of Prion Diseases, University College London, London W1W 7FF, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3738-3423","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Owein","family":"Guillemot-Legris","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"UCL Centre for Nerve Engineering, Department of Pharmacology, UCL School of Pharmacy, University College London, London WC1N 1AX, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8117-3074","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"James B.","family":"Phillips","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"UCL Centre for Nerve Engineering, Department of Pharmacology, UCL School of Pharmacy, University College London, London WC1N 1AX, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,23]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Stocco, E., Barbon, S., Emmi, A., Tiengo, C., Macchi, V., De Caro, R., and Porzionato, A. 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