We report here that another FGF family member, FGF-8 is able to protect rat hippocampal cultures from oxidative stress. The b isoform of FGF-8 protected hippocampal cultures from hydrogen peroxide with an EC50 of approximately 25 ng/ml.;Mesenchymal stromal cells were cultivated for 2 to 3 passages and neural differentiation was induced with fibroblast growth factor 2, fibroblast growth factor 8, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor.;Functionally, FGF8 promoted neurite outgrowth in human neuroblastoma SK-N-MC cells as well as in rat pheochromocytoma PC12 cells, suggesting that FGF8 acts as a neurotrophic factor. FGF8 also supported neuronal survival and differentiation in cultured human neural progenitor cells.;The results showed that both migration and proliferation was induced by FGF8.