Primary Cultures of Fetal Epithelial Progenitors.

In this chapter, we present a protocol for isolating fetal epithelial progenitors from the murine small intestine and colon, and for culturing them ex vivo using the three-dimensional organoid system. We also describe cellular approaches to characterize Lgr5-negative fetal progenitors and compare their identity and differentiation potential to those of Lgr5-positive adult intestinal stem cells. This system provides a valuable tool for studying the biology of fetal progenitors and exploring the developmental origins of adult intestinal stem cells.