The ability of pluripotent stem cells (PSC), such as embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, to assume the identity of any other cell type makes them a reliable way to derive cells for disease modeling and cell therapy. Reprogramming patient somatic cells into neurons and other therapeutically relevant cell types offers new strategies for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, like Parkinson’s disease. The lineage-specific differentiation of PSCs to produce a large quantity of healthy and/or genetically engineered neurons is the ultimate goal of stem cell therapy for patients with neurodegenerative disorders. Here, we describe two established protocols for the efficient derivation of dopaminergic neurons from PSCs using defined media and/or small molecules. Dopaminergic neurons can be efficiently generated using either of these protocols on a large scale.
