BACKGROUND:: The existing experimental results show that bone marrow stromal cells have enormous potential of differentiating into bone, neural stem cells and hematopoietic stem cells, while baicalin can induce cell differentiation. OBJECTIVE:: To study the possibility that induced the differentiation of bone marrow stromal cells into neural stem cells in vitro by baicalin. METHODS:: Bone marrow stromal cells were harvested from Wistar rats, cultured and assigned to experimental and control groups. That in the control group was left intact. BMSCs in the experimental group were induced by baicalin (350–400 μmol/L). Both groups had the same training environment. Well grown cells following 6 consecutive days were detected using Western blot assay and reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:: After induced by baicalin for 7 days, bone marrow stromal cells formed the more typical form of neural cells. Before induction, bone marrow stromal cells did not express neural cell marker protein mRNA and protein. After induced for 6 days, neural cells expressed marker protein and mRNA. Control group was negative for marker protein and mRNA. These indicated that baicalin may induce the differentiation of adult rat bone marrow stromal cells into neuron-like cell in vitro.Zhang L, Zhang Y, Ni HX, Chen LM. Differentiation of rat bone marrow stromal cells into neural stem cells induced by baicalin in vitro. Zhongguo Zuzhi Gongcheng Yanjiu yu Linchuang Kangfu. 2010;14(27): 5054–5057.[http://www.crter.cn http://en.zglckf.com]