Patent ID: 7807371

Claim:
A method of selecting a dopaminergic neuron proliferative progenitor cell, wherein the method comprises the step of contacting a polynucleotide probe with a cell sample thought to comprise a dopaminergic neuron proliferative progenitor cell, wherein a cell which binds said polynucleotide is identified as a dopaminergic neuron proliferative progenitor cell, wherein the polynucleotide probe identifies Lrp4 and comprises a sequence selected from the following nucleotide sequences (a) to (d): (a) a nucleotide sequence complementary to a nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1; (b) a nucleotide sequence complementary to a nucleotide sequence encoding an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 3; (c) a nucleotide sequence that hybridizes under stringent conditions with a polynucleotide consisting of a nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1, wherein the stringent hybridization conditions comprise a wash step comprising a wash in 2×SSC, 0.1% SDS at 65° C., wherein the polynucleotide has at least 95% homology to the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1; and, (d) a nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 15 or 16.