Human Decidua-Derived Mesenchymal Cells Are a Promising Source for the Generation and Cell Banking of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Shofuda, Tomoko; Kanematsu, Daisuke; Fukusumi, Hayato; Yamamoto, Atsuyo; Bamba, Yohei; Yoshitatsu, Sumiko; Suemizu, Hiroshi; Nakamura, Masato; Sugimoto, Yoshikazu; Furue, Miho Kusuda; Kohara, Arihiro; Akamatsu, Wado; Okada, Yohei; Okano, Hideyuki; Yamasaki, Mami; Kanemura, Yonehiro

2013-01-01

Placental tissue is a biomaterial with remarkable potential for use in regenerative medicine. It has a three-layer structure derived from the fetus (amnion and chorion) and the mother (decidua), and it contains huge numbers of cells. Moreover, placental tissue can be collected without any physical danger to the donor and can be matched with a variety of HLA types. The decidua-derived mesenchymal cells (DMCs) are highly proliferative fibroblast-like cells that express a similar pattern of CD antigens as bone marrow-derived mesenchymal cells (BM-MSCs). Here we demonstrated that induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells could be efficiently generated from DMCs by retroviral transfer of reprogramming factor genes. DMC-hiPS cells showed equivalent characteristics to human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) in colony morphology, global gene expression profile (including human pluripotent stem cell markers), DNA methylation status of the OCT3/4 and NANOG promoters, and ability to differentiate into components of the three germ layers in vitro and in vivo. The RNA expression of XIST and the methylation status of its promoter region suggested that DMC-iPSCs, when maintained undifferentiated and pluripotent, had three distinct states: (1) complete X-chromosome reactivation, (2) one inactive X-chromosome, or (3) an epigenetic aberration. Because DMCs are derived from the maternal portion of the placenta, they can be collected with the full consent of the adult donor and have considerable ethical advantages for cell banking and the subsequent generation of human iPS cells for regenerative applications. PMID:26858858

Human induced pluripotent stem cells on autologous feeders.

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Kazutoshi Takahashi

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: For therapeutic usage of induced Pluripotent Stem (iPS cells, to accomplish xeno-free culture is critical. Previous reports have shown that human embryonic stem (ES cells can be maintained in feeder-free condition. However, absence of feeder cells can be a hostile environment for pluripotent cells and often results in karyotype abnormalities. Instead of animal feeders, human fibroblasts can be used as feeder cells of human ES cells. However, one still has to be concerned about the existence of unidentified pathogens, such as viruses and prions in these non-autologous feeders. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: This report demonstrates that human induced Pluripotent Stem (iPS cells can be established and maintained on isogenic parental feeder cells. We tested four independent human skin fibroblasts for the potential to maintain self-renewal of iPS cells. All the fibroblasts tested, as well as their conditioned medium, were capable of maintaining the undifferentiated state and normal karyotypes of iPS cells. Furthermore, human iPS cells can be generated on isogenic parental fibroblasts as feeders. These iPS cells carried on proliferation over 19 passages with undifferentiated morphologies. They expressed undifferentiated pluripotent cell markers, and could differentiate into all three germ layers via embryoid body and teratoma formation. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: These results suggest that autologous fibroblasts can be not only a source for iPS cells but also be feeder layers. Our results provide a possibility to solve the dilemma by using isogenic fibroblasts as feeder layers of iPS cells. This is an important step toward the establishment of clinical grade iPS cells.

Modeling human infertility with pluripotent stem cells

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Di Chen

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Human fertility is dependent upon the correct establishment and differentiation of the germline. This is because no other cell type in the body is capable of passing a genome and epigenome from parent to child. Terminally differentiated germline cells in the adult testis and ovary are called gametes. However, the initial specification of germline cells occurs in the embryo around the time of gastrulation. Most of our knowledge regarding the cell and molecular events that govern human germline specification involves extrapolating scientific principles from model organisms, most notably the mouse. However, recent work using next generation sequencing, gene editing and differentiation of germline cells from pluripotent stem cells has revealed that the core molecular mechanisms that regulate human germline development are different from rodents. Here, we will discuss the major molecular pathways required for human germline differentiation and how pluripotent stem cells have revolutionized our ability to study the earliest steps in human embryonic lineage specification in order to understand human fertility.

Genome editing of human pluripotent stem cells to generate human cellular disease models

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Kiran Musunuru

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Disease modeling with human pluripotent stem cells has come into the public spotlight with the awarding of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for 2012 to Drs John Gurdon and Shinya Yamanaka for the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent. This discovery has opened the door for the generation of pluripotent stem cells from individuals with disease and the differentiation of these cells into somatic cell types for the study of disease pathophysiology. The emergence of genome-editing technology over the past few years has made it feasible to generate and investigate human cellular disease models with even greater speed and efficiency. Here, recent technological advances in genome editing, and its utility in human biology and disease studies, are reviewed.

Defining differentially methylated regions specific for the acquisition of pluripotency and maintenance in human pluripotent stem cells via microarray.

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WenYin He

Full Text Available Epigenetic regulation is critical for the maintenance of human pluripotent stem cells. It has been shown that pluripotent stem cells, such as embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, appear to have a hypermethylated status compared with differentiated cells. However, the epigenetic differences in genes that maintain stemness and regulate reprogramming between embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells remain unclear. Additionally, differential methylation patterns of induced pluripotent stem cells generated using diverse methods require further study.Here, we determined the DNA methylation profiles of 10 human cell lines, including 2 ESC lines, 4 virally derived iPSC lines, 2 episomally derived iPSC lines, and the 2 parental cell lines from which the iPSCs were derived using Illumina's Infinium HumanMethylation450 BeadChip. The iPSCs exhibited a hypermethylation status similar to that of ESCs but with distinct differences from the parental cells. Genes with a common methylation pattern between iPSCs and ESCs were classified as critical factors for stemness, whereas differences between iPSCs and ESCs suggested that iPSCs partly retained the parental characteristics and gained de novo methylation aberrances during cellular reprogramming. No significant differences were identified between virally and episomally derived iPSCs. This study determined in detail the de novo differential methylation signatures of particular stem cell lines.This study describes the DNA methylation profiles of human iPSCs generated using both viral and episomal methods, the corresponding somatic cells, and hESCs. Series of ss-DMRs and ES-iPS-DMRs were defined with high resolution. Knowledge of this type of epigenetic information could be used as a signature for stemness and self-renewal and provides a potential method for selecting optimal pluripotent stem cells for human regenerative medicine.

Microtubule Abnormalities Underlying Gulf War Illness in Neurons from Human-Induced Pluripotent Cells

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2016-09-01

cells derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), originating from GW...AWARD NUMBER: W81XWH-15-1-0433 TITLE: Microtubule Abnormalities Underlying Gulf War Illness in Neurons from Human- Induced Pluripotent Cells ...A simple blood sample is taken from the soldier, and then transduced, using reliable established methods , to make the cells pluripotent .

Directed Differentiation of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells to Microglia

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Panagiotis Douvaras

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Microglia, the immune cells of the brain, are crucial to proper development and maintenance of the CNS, and their involvement in numerous neurological disorders is increasingly being recognized. To improve our understanding of human microglial biology, we devised a chemically defined protocol to generate human microglia from pluripotent stem cells. Myeloid progenitors expressing CD14/CX3CR1 were generated within 30 days of differentiation from both embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs. Further differentiation of the progenitors resulted in ramified microglia with highly motile processes, expressing typical microglial markers. Analyses of gene expression and cytokine release showed close similarities between iPSC-derived (iPSC-MG and human primary microglia as well as clear distinctions from macrophages. iPSC-MG were able to phagocytose and responded to ADP by producing intracellular Ca2+ transients, whereas macrophages lacked such response. The differentiation protocol was highly reproducible across several pluripotent stem cell lines.

The Generation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells from Blood Cells: An Efficient Protocol Using Serial Plating of Reprogrammed Cells by Centrifugation

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Youngkyun Kim

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs have demonstrated great potential for differentiation into diverse tissues. We report a straightforward and highly efficient method for the generation of iPSCs from PBMCs. By plating the cells serially to a newly coated plate by centrifugation, this protocol provides multiple healthy iPSC colonies even from a small number of PBMCs. The generated iPSCs expressed pluripotent markers and differentiated into all three germ layer lineages. The protocol can also be used with umbilical cord blood mononuclear cells (CBMCs. In this study, we present a simple and efficient protocol that improved the yield of iPSCs from floating cells such as PBMCs and CBMCs by serial plating and centrifugation.

Lectin binding profiles of SSEA-4 enriched, pluripotent human embryonic stem cell surfaces

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Venable, Alison; Mitalipova, Maisam; Lyons, Ian; Jones, Karen; Shin, Soojung; Pierce, Michael; Stice, Steven

2005-01-01

Background Pluripotent human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) have the potential to form every cell type in the body. These cells must be appropriately characterized prior to differentiation studies or when defining characteristics of the pluripotent state. Some developmentally regulated cell surface antigens identified by monoclonal antibodies in a variety of species and stem cell types have proven to be side chains of membrane glycolipids and glycoproteins. Therefore, to examine hESC surfaces for other potential pluripotent markers, we used a panel of 14 lectins, which were chosen based on their specificity for a variety of carbohydrates and carbohydrate linkages, along with stage specific embryonic antigen-4 (SSEA-4), to determine binding quantitation by flow cytometry and binding localization in adherent colonies by immunocytochemistry. Results Enriching cells for SSEA-4 expression increased the percentage of SSEA-4 positive cells to 98–99%. Using enriched high SSEA-4-expressing hESCs, we then analyzed the binding percentages of selected lectins and found a large variation in binding percentages ranging from 4% to 99% binding. Lycopersicon (tomato)esculetum lectin (TL), Ricinus communis agglutinin (RCA), and Concanavalin A (Con A) bound to SSEA-4 positive regions of hESCs and with similar binding percentages as SSEA-4. In contrast, we found Dolichos biflorus agglutinin (DBA) and Lotus tetragonolobus lectin (LTL) did not bind to hESCs while Phaseolus vulgaris leuco-agglutinin (PHA-L), Vicia villosa agglutinin (VVA), Ulex europaeus agglutinin (UEA), Phaseolus vulgaris erythro-agglutinin (PHA-E), and Maackia amurensis agglutinin (MAA) bound partially to hESCs. These binding percentages correlated well with immunocytochemistry results. Conclusion Our results provide information about types of carbohydrates and carbohydrate linkages found on pluripotent hESC surfaces. We propose that TL, RCA and Con A may be used as markers that are associated with the pluripotent

Lectin binding profiles of SSEA-4 enriched, pluripotent human embryonic stem cell surfaces

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Shin Soojung

2005-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Pluripotent human embryonic stem cells (hESCs have the potential to form every cell type in the body. These cells must be appropriately characterized prior to differentiation studies or when defining characteristics of the pluripotent state. Some developmentally regulated cell surface antigens identified by monoclonal antibodies in a variety of species and stem cell types have proven to be side chains of membrane glycolipids and glycoproteins. Therefore, to examine hESC surfaces for other potential pluripotent markers, we used a panel of 14 lectins, which were chosen based on their specificity for a variety of carbohydrates and carbohydrate linkages, along with stage specific embryonic antigen-4 (SSEA-4, to determine binding quantitation by flow cytometry and binding localization in adherent colonies by immunocytochemistry. Results Enriching cells for SSEA-4 expression increased the percentage of SSEA-4 positive cells to 98–99%. Using enriched high SSEA-4-expressing hESCs, we then analyzed the binding percentages of selected lectins and found a large variation in binding percentages ranging from 4% to 99% binding. Lycopersicon (tomatoesculetum lectin (TL, Ricinus communis agglutinin (RCA, and Concanavalin A (Con A bound to SSEA-4 positive regions of hESCs and with similar binding percentages as SSEA-4. In contrast, we found Dolichos biflorus agglutinin (DBA and Lotus tetragonolobus lectin (LTL did not bind to hESCs while Phaseolus vulgaris leuco-agglutinin (PHA-L, Vicia villosa agglutinin (VVA, Ulex europaeus agglutinin (UEA, Phaseolus vulgaris erythro-agglutinin (PHA-E, and Maackia amurensis agglutinin (MAA bound partially to hESCs. These binding percentages correlated well with immunocytochemistry results. Conclusion Our results provide information about types of carbohydrates and carbohydrate linkages found on pluripotent hESC surfaces. We propose that TL, RCA and Con A may be used as markers that are associated with the

Capturing Human Naïve Pluripotency in the Embryo and in the Dish.

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Zimmerlin, Ludovic; Park, Tea Soon; Zambidis, Elias T

2017-08-15

Although human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) were first derived almost 20 years ago, it was only recently acknowledged that they share closer molecular and functional identity to postimplantation lineage-primed murine epiblast stem cells than to naïve preimplantation inner cell mass-derived mouse ESCs (mESCs). A myriad of transcriptional, epigenetic, biochemical, and metabolic attributes have now been described that distinguish naïve and primed pluripotent states in both rodents and humans. Conventional hESCs and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) appear to lack many of the defining hallmarks of naïve mESCs. These include important features of the naïve ground state murine epiblast, such as an open epigenetic architecture, reduced lineage-primed gene expression, and chimera and germline competence following injection into a recipient blastocyst-stage embryo. Several transgenic and chemical methods were recently reported that appear to revert conventional human PSCs to mESC-like ground states. However, it remains unclear if subtle deviations in global transcription, cell signaling dependencies, and extent of epigenetic/metabolic shifts in these various human naïve-reverted pluripotent states represent true functional differences or alternatively the existence of distinct human pluripotent states along a spectrum. In this study, we review the current understanding and developmental features of various human pluripotency-associated phenotypes and discuss potential biological mechanisms that may support stable maintenance of an authentic epiblast-like ground state of human pluripotency.

Tumorigenicity studies for human pluripotent stem cell-derived products.

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Kuroda, Takuya; Yasuda, Satoshi; Sato, Yoji

2013-01-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), i.e. human embryonic stem cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells, are able to self-renew and differentiate into multiple cell types. Because of these abilities, numerous attempts have been made to utilize hPSCs in regenerative medicine/cell therapy. hPSCs are, however, also tumorigenic, that is, they can give rise to the progressive growth of tumor nodules in immunologically unresponsive animals. Therefore, assessing and managing the tumorigenicity of all final products is essential in order to prevent ectopic tissue formation, tumor development, and/or malignant transformation elicited by residual pluripotent stem cells after implantation. No detailed guideline for the tumorigenicity testing of hPSC-derived products has yet been issued for regenerative medicine/cell therapy, despite the urgent necessity. Here, we describe the current situations and issues related to the tumorigenicity testing of hPSC-derived products and we review the advantages and disadvantages of several types of tumorigenicity-associated tests. We also refer to important considerations in the execution and design of specific studies to monitor the tumorigenicity of hPSC-derived products.

Human heart disease : lessons from human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes

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Giacomelli, E.; Mummery, C.L.; Bellin, M.

2017-01-01

Technical advances in generating and phenotyping cardiomyocytes from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC-CMs) are now driving their wider acceptance as in vitro models to understand human heart disease and discover therapeutic targets that may lead to new compounds for clinical use. Current

Human induced pluripotent stem cells: a review of the US patent landscape.

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Georgieva, Bilyana P; Love, Jane M

2010-07-01

Human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells and human embryonic stem cells are cells that have the ability to differentiate into a variety of cell types. Embryonic stem cells are derived from human embryos; however, by contrast, human iPS cells can be obtained from somatic cells that have undergone a process of 'reprogramming' via genetic manipulation such that they develop pluripotency. Since iPS cells are not derived from human embryos, they are a less complicated source of human pluripotent cells and are considered valuable research tools and potentially useful in therapeutic applications in regenerative medicine. Worldwide, there are only three issued patents concerning iPS cells. Therefore, the patent landscape in this field is largely undefined. This article provides an overview of the issued patents as well as the pending published patent applications in the field.

Towards consistent generation of pancreatic lineage progenitors from human pluripotent stem cells.

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Rostovskaya, Maria; Bredenkamp, Nicholas; Smith, Austin

2015-10-19

Human pluripotent stem cells can in principle be used as a source of any differentiated cell type for disease modelling, drug screening, toxicology testing or cell replacement therapy. Type I diabetes is considered a major target for stem cell applications due to the shortage of primary human beta cells. Several protocols have been reported for generating pancreatic progenitors by in vitro differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells. Here we first assessed one of these protocols on a panel of pluripotent stem cell lines for capacity to engender glucose sensitive insulin-producing cells after engraftment in immunocompromised mice. We observed variable outcomes with only one cell line showing a low level of glucose response. We, therefore, undertook a systematic comparison of different methods for inducing definitive endoderm and subsequently pancreatic differentiation. Of several protocols tested, we identified a combined approach that robustly generated pancreatic progenitors in vitro from both embryo-derived and induced pluripotent stem cells. These findings suggest that, although there are intrinsic differences in lineage specification propensity between pluripotent stem cell lines, optimal differentiation procedures may consistently direct a substantial fraction of cells into pancreatic specification. © 2015 The Authors.

Sex-Dependent Gene Expression in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Daniel Ronen

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Males and females have a variety of sexually dimorphic traits, most of which result from hormonal differences. However, differences between male and female embryos initiate very early in development, before hormonal influence begins, suggesting the presence of genetically driven sexual dimorphisms. By comparing the gene expression profiles of male and X-inactivated female human pluripotent stem cells, we detected Y-chromosome-driven effects. We discovered that the sex-determining gene SRY is expressed in human male pluripotent stem cells and is induced by reprogramming. In addition, we detected more than 200 differentially expressed autosomal genes in male and female embryonic stem cells. Some of these genes are involved in steroid metabolism pathways and lead to sex-dependent differentiation in response to the estrogen precursor estrone. Thus, we propose that the presence of the Y chromosome and specifically SRY may drive sex-specific differences in the growth and differentiation of pluripotent stem cells.

Defining the genomic signature of totipotency and pluripotency during early human development.

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Amparo Galan

Full Text Available The genetic mechanisms governing human pre-implantation embryo development and the in vitro counterparts, human embryonic stem cells (hESCs, still remain incomplete. Previous global genome studies demonstrated that totipotent blastomeres from day-3 human embryos and pluripotent inner cell masses (ICMs from blastocysts, display unique and differing transcriptomes. Nevertheless, comparative gene expression analysis has revealed that no significant differences exist between hESCs derived from blastomeres versus those obtained from ICMs, suggesting that pluripotent hESCs involve a new developmental progression. To understand early human stages evolution, we developed an undifferentiation network signature (UNS and applied it to a differential gene expression profile between single blastomeres from day-3 embryos, ICMs and hESCs. This allowed us to establish a unique signature composed of highly interconnected genes characteristic of totipotency (61 genes, in vivo pluripotency (20 genes, and in vitro pluripotency (107 genes, and which are also proprietary according to functional analysis. This systems biology approach has led to an improved understanding of the molecular and signaling processes governing human pre-implantation embryo development, as well as enabling us to comprehend how hESCs might adapt to in vitro culture conditions.

Reconstruction, visualization and explorative analysis of human pluripotency network

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Priyanka Narad

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Identification of genes/proteins involved in pluripotency and their inter-relationships is important for understanding the induction/loss and maintenance of pluripotency. With the availability of large volume of data on interaction/regulation of pluripotency scattered across a large number of biological databases and hundreds of scientific journals, it is required a systematic integration of data which will create a complete view of pluripotency network. Describing and interpreting such a network of interaction and regulation (i.e., stimulation and inhibition links are essential tasks of computational biology, an important first step in systems-level understanding of the underlying mechanisms of pluripotency. To address this, we have assembled a network of 166 molecular interactions, stimulations and inhibitions, based on a collection of research data from 147 publications, involving 122 human genes/proteins, all in a standard electronic format, enabling analyses by readily available software such as Cytoscape and its Apps (formerly called "Plugins". The network includes the core circuit of OCT4 (POU5F1, SOX2 and NANOG, its periphery (such as STAT3, KLF4, UTF1, ZIC3, and c-MYC, connections to upstream signaling pathways (such as ACTIVIN, WNT, FGF, and BMP, and epigenetic regulators (such as L1TD1, LSD1 and PRC2. We describe the general properties of the network and compare it with other literature-based networks. Gene Ontology (GO analysis is being performed to find out the over-represented GO terms in the network. We use several expression datasets to condense the network to a set of network links that identify the key players (genes/proteins and the pathways involved in transition from one state of pluripotency to other state (i.e., native to primed state, primed to non-pluripotent state and pluripotent to non-pluripotent state.

A Novel Method for Isolation of Pluripotent Stem Cells from Human Umbilical Cord Blood.

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Monti, Manuela; Imberti, Barbara; Bianchi, Niccolò; Pezzotta, Anna; Morigi, Marina; Del Fante, Claudia; Redi, Carlo Alberto; Perotti, Cesare

2017-09-01

Very small embryonic-like cells (VSELs) are a population of very rare pluripotent stem cells isolated in adult murine bone marrow and many other tissues and organs, including umbilical cord blood (UCB). VSEL existence is still not universally accepted by the scientific community, so for this purpose, we sought to investigate whether presumptive VSELs (pVSELs) could be isolated from human UCB with an improved protocol based on the isolation of enriched progenitor cells by depletion of nonprogenitor cells with magnetic separation. Progenitor cells, likely including VSELs, cultured with retinoic acid were able to form dense colonies and cystic embryoid bodies and to differentiate toward the ecto-meso-endoderm lineages as shown by the positivity to specific markers. VSEL differentiative potential toward mesodermal lineage was further demonstrated in vitro upon exposure to an established inductive protocol, which induced the acquisition of renal progenitor cell phenotype. VSEL-derived renal progenitors showed regenerative potential in a cisplatin model of acute kidney injury by restoring renal function and tubular structure through induction of proliferation of endogenous renal cells. The data presented here foster the great debate that surrounds VSELs and, more in general, the existence of cells endowed with pluripotent features in adult tissues. In fact, the possibility to find and isolate subpopulations of cells that fully fit all the criteria utilized to define pluripotency remains, nowadays, almost unproven. Thus, efforts to better characterize the phenotype of these intriguing cells are crucial to understand their possible applications for regenerative and precision medicine purposes.

Strand displacement amplification for ultrasensitive detection of human pluripotent stem cells.

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Wu, Wei; Mao, Yiping; Zhao, Shiming; Lu, Xuewen; Liang, Xingguo; Zeng, Lingwen

2015-06-30

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), such as embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), provide a powerful model system for studies of cellular identity and early mammalian development, which hold great promise for regenerative medicine. It is necessary to develop a convenient method to discriminate hPSCs from other cells in clinics and basic research. Herein, a simple and reliable biosensor for stem cell detection was established. In this biosensor system, stage-specific embryonic antigen-3 (SSEA-3) and stage-specific embryonic antigen-4 (SSEA-4) were used to mark human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs). Antibody specific for SSEA-3 was coated onto magnetic beads for hPSCs enrichment, and antibody specific for SSEA-4 was conjugated with carboxyl-modified tDNA sequence which was used as template for strand displacement amplification (SDA). The amplified single strand DNA (ssDNA) was detected with a lateral flow biosensor (LFB). This biosensor is capable of detecting a minimum of 19 human embryonic stem cells by a strip reader and 100 human embryonic stem cells by the naked eye within 80min. This approach has also shown excellent specificity to distinguish hPSCs from other types of cells, showing that it is promising for specific and handy detection of human pluripotent stem cells. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Human pluripotent stem cells: an emerging model in developmental biology.

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Zhu, Zengrong; Huangfu, Danwei

2013-02-01

Developmental biology has long benefited from studies of classic model organisms. Recently, human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), including human embryonic stem cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells, have emerged as a new model system that offers unique advantages for developmental studies. Here, we discuss how studies of hPSCs can complement classic approaches using model organisms, and how hPSCs can be used to recapitulate aspects of human embryonic development 'in a dish'. We also summarize some of the recently developed genetic tools that greatly facilitate the interrogation of gene function during hPSC differentiation. With the development of high-throughput screening technologies, hPSCs have the potential to revolutionize gene discovery in mammalian development.

Modelling Neurodegenerative Diseases Using Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Hall, Vanessa Jane

2016-01-01

Neurodegenerative diseases are being modelled in-vitro using human patient-specific, induced pluripotent stem cells and transgenic embryonic stem cells to determine more about disease mechanisms, as well as to discover new treatments for patients. Current research in modelling Alzheimer’s disease......, frontotemporal dementia and Parkinson’s disease using pluripotent stem cells is described, along with the advent of gene-editing, which has been the complimentary tool for the field. Current methods used to model these diseases are predominantly dependent on 2D cell culture methods. Outcomes reveal that only...... that includes studying more complex 3D cell cultures, as well as accelerating aging of the neurons, may help to yield stronger phenotypes in the cultured cells. Thus, the use and application of pluripotent stem cells for modelling disease have already shown to be a powerful approach for discovering more about...

RNA-Guided Activation of Pluripotency Genes in Human Fibroblasts

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Xiong, Kai; Zhou, Yan; Blichfeld, Kristian Aabo

2017-01-01

-associated protein 9 (dCas9)-VP64 (CRISPRa) alone, or a combination of dCas9-VP64 and MS2-P65-HSF1 [synergistic activation mediator (SAM) system] mediated activation of five pluripotency genes: KLF4 (K), LIN28 (L), MYC (M), OCT4 (O), and SOX2 (S) in human cells (HEK293T, HeLa, HepG2, and primary fibroblasts...... could be obtained from these SAM fibroblasts. In conclusion, our study showed that CRISPR/Cas9-based ATFs are potent to activate and maintain transcription of endogenous human pluripotent genes. However, future improvements of the system are still required to improve activation efficiency and cellular...

Cell fiber-based three-dimensional culture system for highly efficient expansion of human induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Ikeda, Kazuhiro; Nagata, Shogo; Okitsu, Teru; Takeuchi, Shoji

2017-06-06

Human pluripotent stem cells are a potentially powerful cellular resource for application in regenerative medicine. Because such applications require large numbers of human pluripotent stem cell-derived cells, a scalable culture system of human pluripotent stem cell needs to be developed. Several suspension culture systems for human pluripotent stem cell expansion exist; however, it is difficult to control the thickness of cell aggregations in these systems, leading to increased cell death likely caused by limited diffusion of gases and nutrients into the aggregations. Here, we describe a scalable culture system using the cell fiber technology for the expansion of human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. The cells were encapsulated and cultured within the core region of core-shell hydrogel microfibers, resulting in the formation of rod-shaped or fiber-shaped cell aggregations with sustained thickness and high viability. By encapsulating the cells with type I collagen, we demonstrated a long-term culture of the cells by serial passaging at a high expansion rate (14-fold in four days) while retaining its pluripotency. Therefore, our culture system could be used for large-scale expansion of human pluripotent stem cells for use in regenerative medicine.

Generation of human β-thalassemia induced pluripotent cell lines by reprogramming of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stromal cells using modified mRNA.

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Varela, Ioanna; Karagiannidou, Angeliki; Oikonomakis, Vasilis; Tzetis, Maria; Tzanoudaki, Marianna; Siapati, Elena-Konstantina; Vassilopoulos, George; Graphakos, Stelios; Kanavakis, Emmanuel; Goussetis, Evgenios

2014-12-01

Synthetic modified mRNA molecules encoding pluripotency transcription factors have been used successfully in reprogramming human fibroblasts to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). We have applied this method on bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (BM-MSCs) obtained from a patient with β-thalassemia (β-thal) with the aim to generate trangene-free β-thal-iPSCs. Transfection of 10(4) BM-MSCs by lipofection with mRNA encoding the reprogramming factors Oct4, Klf4, Sox2, cMyc, and Lin28 resulted in formation of five iPSC colonies, from which three were picked up and expanded in β-thal-iPSC lines. After 10 serial passages in vitro, β-thal-iPSCs maintain genetic stability as shown by array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH) and are capable of forming embryoid bodies in vitro and teratomas in vivo. Their gene expression profile compared to human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and BM-MSCs seems to be similar to that of ESCs, whereas it differs from the profile of the parental BM-MSCs. Differentiation cultures toward a hematopoietic lineage showed the generation of CD34(+) progenitors up to 10%, but with a decreased hematopoietic colony-forming capability. In conclusion, we report herein the generation of transgene-free β-thal-iPSCs that could be widely used for disease modeling and gene therapy applications. Moreover, it was demonstrated that the mRNA-based reprogramming method, used mainly in fibroblasts, is also suitable for reprogramming of human BM-MSCs.

Haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells from human pluripotent stem cells

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Sugimura, Ryohichi; Jha, Deepak Kumar; Han, Areum; Soria-Valles, Clara; da Rocha, Edroaldo Lummertz; Lu, Yi-Fen; Goettel, Jeremy A.; Serrao, Erik; Rowe, R. Grant; Malleshaiah, Mohan; Wong, Irene; Sousa, Patricia; Zhu, Ted N.; Ditadi, Andrea; Keller, Gordon; Engelman, Alan N.; Snapper, Scott B.; Doulatov, Sergei; Daley, George Q.

2018-01-01

A variety of tissue lineages can be differentiated from pluripotent stem cells by mimicking embryonic development through stepwise exposure to morphogens, or by conversion of one differentiated cell type into another by enforced expression of master transcription factors. Here, to yield functional human haematopoietic stem cells, we perform morphogen-directed differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells into haemogenic endothelium followed by screening of 26 candidate haematopoietic stem-cell-specifying transcription factors for their capacity to promote multi-lineage haematopoietic engraftment in mouse hosts. We recover seven transcription factors (ERG, HOXA5, HOXA9, HOXA10, LCOR, RUNX1 and SPI1) that are sufficient to convert haemogenic endothelium into haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells that engraft myeloid, B and T cells in primary and secondary mouse recipients. Our combined approach of morphogen-driven differentiation and transcription-factor-mediated cell fate conversion produces haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells from pluripotent stem cells and holds promise for modelling haematopoietic disease in humanized mice and for therapeutic strategies in genetic blood disorders. PMID:28514439

Erythroid differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells is independent of donor cell type of origin.

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Dorn, Isabel; Klich, Katharina; Arauzo-Bravo, Marcos J; Radstaak, Martina; Santourlidis, Simeon; Ghanjati, Foued; Radke, Teja F; Psathaki, Olympia E; Hargus, Gunnar; Kramer, Jan; Einhaus, Martin; Kim, Jeong Beom; Kögler, Gesine; Wernet, Peter; Schöler, Hans R; Schlenke, Peter; Zaehres, Holm

2015-01-01

Epigenetic memory in induced pluripotent stem cells, which is related to the somatic cell type of origin of the stem cells, might lead to variations in the differentiation capacities of the pluripotent stem cells. In this context, induced pluripotent stem cells from human CD34(+) hematopoietic stem cells might be more suitable for hematopoietic differentiation than the commonly used fibroblast-derived induced pluripotent stem cells. To investigate the influence of an epigenetic memory on the ex vivo expansion of induced pluripotent stem cells into erythroid cells, we compared induced pluripotent stem cells from human neural stem cells and human cord blood-derived CD34(+) hematopoietic stem cells and evaluated their potential for differentiation into hematopoietic progenitor and mature red blood cells. Although genome-wide DNA methylation profiling at all promoter regions demonstrates that the epigenetic memory of induced pluripotent stem cells is influenced by the somatic cell type of origin of the stem cells, we found a similar hematopoietic induction potential and erythroid differentiation pattern of induced pluripotent stem cells of different somatic cell origin. All human induced pluripotent stem cell lines showed terminal maturation into normoblasts and enucleated reticulocytes, producing predominantly fetal hemoglobin. Differences were only observed in the growth rate of erythroid cells, which was slightly higher in the induced pluripotent stem cells derived from CD34(+) hematopoietic stem cells. More detailed methylation analysis of the hematopoietic and erythroid promoters identified similar CpG methylation levels in the induced pluripotent stem cell lines derived from CD34(+) cells and those derived from neural stem cells, which confirms their comparable erythroid differentiation potential. Copyright© Ferrata Storti Foundation.

Human pluripotent stem cell models of cardiac disease: from mechanisms to therapies

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Karina O. Brandão

2017-09-01

Full Text Available It is now a decade since human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs were first described. The reprogramming of adult somatic cells to a pluripotent state has become a robust technology that has revolutionised our ability to study human diseases. Crucially, these cells capture all the genetic aspects of the patient from which they were derived. Combined with advances in generating the different cell types present in the human heart, this has opened up new avenues to study cardiac disease in humans and investigate novel therapeutic approaches to treat these pathologies. Here, we provide an overview of the current state of the field regarding the generation of cardiomyocytes from human pluripotent stem cells and methods to assess them functionally, an essential requirement when investigating disease and therapeutic outcomes. We critically evaluate whether treatments suggested by these in vitro models could be translated to clinical practice. Finally, we consider current shortcomings of these models and propose methods by which they could be further improved.

ROCK inhibitor primes human induced pluripotent stem cells to selectively differentiate towards mesendodermal lineage via epithelial-mesenchymal transition-like modulation

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Maricela Maldonado

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Robust control of human induced pluripotent stem cell (hIPSC differentiation is essential to realize its patient-tailored therapeutic potential. Here, we demonstrate a novel application of Y-27632, a small molecule Rho-associated protein kinase (ROCK inhibitor, to significantly influence the differentiation of hIPSCs in a lineage-specific manner. The application of Y-27632 to hIPSCs resulted in a decrease in actin bundling and disruption of colony formation in a concentration and time-dependent manner. Such changes in cell and colony morphology were associated with decreased expression of E-cadherin, a cell-cell junctional protein, proportional to the increased exposure to Y-27632. Interestingly, gene and protein expression of pluripotency markers such as NANOG and OCT4 were not downregulated by an exposure to Y-27632 up to 36 h. Simultaneously, epithelial-to-mesenchymal (EMT transition markers were upregulated with an exposure to Y-27632. These EMT-like changes in the cells with longer exposure to Y-27632 resulted in a significant increase in the subsequent differentiation efficiency towards mesendodermal lineage. In contrast, an inhibitory effect was observed when cells were subjected to ectodermal differentiation after prolonged exposure to Y-27632. Collectively, these results present a novel method for priming hIPSCs to modulate their differentiation potential with a simple application of Y-27632.

Choices for Induction of Pluripotency: Recent Developments in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Reprogramming Strategies

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Brouwer, M.; Zhou, Huiqing; Nadif Kasri, N.

2016-01-01

The ability to generate human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from somatic cells provides tremendous promises for regenerative medicine and its use has widely increased over recent years. However, reprogramming efficiencies remain low and chromosomal instability and tumorigenic potential are

Generation of human induced pluripotent stem cell lines from human dermal fibroblasts using a non-integration system

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Kyung-Ok Uhm

2017-05-01

Full Text Available We generated human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs from dermal fibroblasts using a Sendai virus (SeV-based gene delivery method. The generated hiPSC line, KSCBi002-A, has a normal karyotype (46,XY. The pluripotency and differentiation capacity were characterized by comparison with those of a human embryonic stem cell line. This cell line is registered and available from the National Stem Cell Bank, Korea National Institute of Health.

Podocalyxin as a major pluripotent marker and novel keratan sulfate proteoglycan in human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Toyoda, Hidenao; Nagai, Yuko; Kojima, Aya; Kinoshita-Toyoda, Akiko

2017-04-01

Podocalyxin (PC) was first identified as a heavily sialylated transmembrane protein of glomerular podocytes. Recent studies suggest that PC is a remarkable glycoconjugate that acts as a universal glyco-carrier. The glycoforms of PC are responsible for multiple functions in normal tissue, human cancer cells, human embryonic stem cells (hESCs), and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). PC is employed as a major pluripotent marker of hESCs and hiPSCs. Among the general antibodies for human PC, TRA-1-60 and TRA-1-81 recognize the keratan sulfate (KS)-related structures. Therefore, It is worthwhile to summarize the outstanding chemical characteristic of PC, including the KS-related structures. Here, we review the glycoforms of PC and discuss the potential of PC as a novel KS proteoglycan in undifferentiated hESCs and hiPSCs.

A murine ESC-like state facilitates transgenesis and homologous recombination in human pluripotent stem cells

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C. Buecker (Christa); H.H. Chen; J.M. Polo (Jose); L. Daheron (Laurence); L. Bu (Lei); T.S. Barakat (Tahsin Stefan); P. Okwieka (Patricia); A. Porter (Andrew); J.H. Gribnau (Joost); K. Hochedlinger (Konrad); N. Geijsen (Niels)

2010-01-01

textabstractMurine pluripotent stem cells can exist in two functionally distinct states, LIF-dependent embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and bFGF-dependent epiblast stem cells (EpiSCs). However, human pluripotent cells so far seemed to assume only an epiblast-like state. Here we demonstrate that human

Dual small-molecule targeting of SMAD signaling stimulates human induced pluripotent stem cells toward neural lineages.

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Methichit Wattanapanitch

Full Text Available Incurable neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease (PD, Huntington's disease (HD, and Alzheimer's disease (AD are very common and can be life-threatening because of their progressive disease symptoms with limited treatment options. To provide an alternative renewable cell source for cell-based transplantation and as study models for neurological diseases, we generated induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs from human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs and then differentiated them into neural progenitor cells (NPCs and mature neurons by dual SMAD signaling inhibitors. Reprogramming efficiency was improved by supplementing the histone deacethylase inhibitor, valproic acid (VPA, and inhibitor of p160-Rho associated coiled-coil kinase (ROCK, Y-27632, after retroviral transduction. We obtained a number of iPS colonies that shared similar characteristics with human embryonic stem cells in terms of their morphology, cell surface antigens, pluripotency-associated gene and protein expressions as well as their in vitro and in vivo differentiation potentials. After treatment with Noggin and SB431542, inhibitors of the SMAD signaling pathway, HDF-iPSCs demonstrated rapid and efficient differentiation into neural lineages. Six days after neural induction, neuroepithelial cells (NEPCs were observed in the adherent monolayer culture, which had the ability to differentiate further into NPCs and neurons, as characterized by their morphology and the expression of neuron-specific transcripts and proteins. We propose that our study may be applied to generate neurological disease patient-specific iPSCs allowing better understanding of disease pathogenesis and drug sensitivity assays.

ROCK inhibitor primes human induced pluripotent stem cells to selectively differentiate towards mesendodermal lineage via epithelial-mesenchymal transition-like modulation.

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Maldonado, Maricela; Luu, Rebeccah J; Ramos, Michael E P; Nam, Jin

2016-09-01

Robust control of human induced pluripotent stem cell (hIPSC) differentiation is essential to realize its patient-tailored therapeutic potential. Here, we demonstrate a novel application of Y-27632, a small molecule Rho-associated protein kinase (ROCK) inhibitor, to significantly influence the differentiation of hIPSCs in a lineage-specific manner. The application of Y-27632 to hIPSCs resulted in a decrease in actin bundling and disruption of colony formation in a concentration and time-dependent manner. Such changes in cell and colony morphology were associated with decreased expression of E-cadherin, a cell-cell junctional protein, proportional to the increased exposure to Y-27632. Interestingly, gene and protein expression of pluripotency markers such as NANOG and OCT4 were not downregulated by an exposure to Y-27632 up to 36h. Simultaneously, epithelial-to-mesenchymal (EMT) transition markers were upregulated with an exposure to Y-27632. These EMT-like changes in the cells with longer exposure to Y-27632 resulted in a significant increase in the subsequent differentiation efficiency towards mesendodermal lineage. In contrast, an inhibitory effect was observed when cells were subjected to ectodermal differentiation after prolonged exposure to Y-27632. Collectively, these results present a novel method for priming hIPSCs to modulate their differentiation potential with a simple application of Y-27632. Copyright © 2016 Helmholtz Zentrum München. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Two sides of the same coin? Unraveling subtle differences between human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells by Raman spectroscopy.

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Parrotta, Elvira; De Angelis, Maria Teresa; Scalise, Stefania; Candeloro, Patrizio; Santamaria, Gianluca; Paonessa, Mariagrazia; Coluccio, Maria Laura; Perozziello, Gerardo; De Vitis, Stefania; Sgura, Antonella; Coluzzi, Elisa; Mollace, Vincenzo; Di Fabrizio, Enzo Mario; Cuda, Giovanni

2017-11-28

Human pluripotent stem cells, including embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, hold enormous promise for many biomedical applications, such as regenerative medicine, drug testing, and disease modeling. Although induced pluripotent stem cells resemble embryonic stem cells both morphologically and functionally, the extent to which these cell lines are truly equivalent, from a molecular point of view, remains controversial. Principal component analysis and K-means cluster analysis of collected Raman spectroscopy data were used for a comparative study of the biochemical fingerprint of human induced pluripotent stem cells and human embryonic stem cells. The Raman spectra analysis results were further validated by conventional biological assays. Raman spectra analysis revealed that the major difference between human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells is due to the nucleic acid content, as shown by the strong positive peaks at 785, 1098, 1334, 1371, 1484, and 1575 cm -1 , which is enriched in human induced pluripotent stem cells. Here, we report a nonbiological approach to discriminate human induced pluripotent stem cells from their native embryonic stem cell counterparts.

Two sides of the same coin? Unraveling subtle differences between human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells by Raman spectroscopy

KAUST Repository

Parrotta, Elvira

2017-11-28

Background: Human pluripotent stem cells, including embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, hold enormous promise for many biomedical applications, such as regenerative medicine, drug testing, and disease modeling. Although induced pluripotent stem cells resemble embryonic stem cells both morphologically and functionally, the extent to which these cell lines are truly equivalent, from a molecular point of view, remains controversial. Methods: Principal component analysis and K-means cluster analysis of collected Raman spectroscopy data were used for a comparative study of the biochemical fingerprint of human induced pluripotent stem cells and human embryonic stem cells. The Raman spectra analysis results were further validated by conventional biological assays. Results: Raman spectra analysis revealed that the major difference between human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells is due to the nucleic acid content, as shown by the strong positive peaks at 785, 1098, 1334, 1371, 1484, and 1575 cm–1, which is enriched in human induced pluripotent stem cells. Conclusions: Here, we report a nonbiological approach to discriminate human induced pluripotent stem cells from their native embryonic stem cell counterparts.

Two sides of the same coin? Unraveling subtle differences between human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells by Raman spectroscopy

KAUST Repository

Parrotta, Elvira; De Angelis, Maria Teresa; Scalise, Stefania; Candeloro, Patrizio; Santamaria, Gianluca; Paonessa, Mariagrazia; Coluccio, Maria Laura; Perozziello, Gerardo; De Vitis, Stefania; Sgura, Antonella; Coluzzi, Elisa; Mollace, Vincenzo; Di Fabrizio, Enzo M.; Cuda, Giovanni

2017-01-01

Background: Human pluripotent stem cells, including embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, hold enormous promise for many biomedical applications, such as regenerative medicine, drug testing, and disease modeling. Although induced pluripotent stem cells resemble embryonic stem cells both morphologically and functionally, the extent to which these cell lines are truly equivalent, from a molecular point of view, remains controversial. Methods: Principal component analysis and K-means cluster analysis of collected Raman spectroscopy data were used for a comparative study of the biochemical fingerprint of human induced pluripotent stem cells and human embryonic stem cells. The Raman spectra analysis results were further validated by conventional biological assays. Results: Raman spectra analysis revealed that the major difference between human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells is due to the nucleic acid content, as shown by the strong positive peaks at 785, 1098, 1334, 1371, 1484, and 1575 cm–1, which is enriched in human induced pluripotent stem cells. Conclusions: Here, we report a nonbiological approach to discriminate human induced pluripotent stem cells from their native embryonic stem cell counterparts.

Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells: A novel frontier in the study of human primary immunodeficiencies

Science.gov (United States)

Pessach, Itai M.; Ordovas-Montanes, Jose; Zhang, Shen-Ying; Casanova, Jean-Laurent; Giliani, Silvia; Gennery, Andrew R.; Al-Herz, Waleed; Manos, Philip D.; Schlaeger, Thorsten M.; Park, In-Hyun; Rucci, Francesca; Agarwal, Suneet; Mostoslavsky, Gustavo; Daley, George Q.; Notarangelo, Luigi D.

2010-01-01

Background The novel ability to epigenetically reprogram somatic cells into induced pluripotent stem cells through the exogenous expression of transcription promises to revolutionize the study of human diseases. Objective Here we report on the generation of 25 induced pluripotent stem cell lines from 6 patients with various forms of Primary Immunodeficiencies, affecting adaptive and/or innate immunity. Methods Patients’ dermal fibroblasts were reprogrammed by expression of four transcription factors, OCT4, SOX2, KLF4, and c-MYC using a single excisable polycistronic lentiviral vector. Results Induced pluripotent stem cells derived from patients with primary immunodeficiencies show a stemness profile that is comparable to that observed in human embryonic stem cells. Following in vitro differentiation into embryoid bodies, pluripotency of the patient-derived indiced pluripotent stem cells lines was demonstrated by expression of genes characteristic of each of the three embryonic layers. We have confirmed the patient-specific origin of the induced pluripotent stem cell lines, and ascertained maintenance of karyotypic integrity. Conclusion By providing a limitless source of diseased stem cells that can be differentiated into various cell types in vitro, the repository of induced pluripotent stem cell lines from patients with primary immunodeficiencies represents a unique resource to investigate the pathophysiology of hematopoietic and extra-hematopoietic manifestations of these diseases, and may assist in the development of novel therapeutic approaches based on gene correction. PMID:21185069

Induction and differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells into functional cardiomyocytes on a compartmented monolayer of gelatin nanofibers

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Tang, Yadong; Liu, Li; Li, Junjun; Yu, Leqian; Wang, Li; Shi, Jian; Chen, Yong

2016-07-01

Extensive efforts have been devoted to develop new substrates for culture and differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) toward cardiac cell-based assays. A more exciting prospect is the construction of cardiac tissue for robust drug screening and cardiac tissue repairing. Here, we developed a patch method by electrospinning and crosslinking of monolayer gelatin nanofibers on a honeycomb frame made of poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA). The monolayer of the nanofibrous structure can support cells with minimal exogenous contact and a maximal efficiency of cell-medium exchange whereas a single hiPSC colony can be uniformly formed in each of the honeycomb compartments. By modulating the treatment time of the ROCK inhibitor Y-27632, the shape of the hiPSC colony could be controlled from a flat layer to a hemisphere. Afterwards, the induction and differentiation of hiPSCs were achieved on the same patch, leading to a uniform cardiac layer with homogeneous contraction. This cardiac layer could then be used for extracellular recording with a commercial multi-electrode array, showing representative field potential waveforms of matured cardiac tissues with appropriate drug responses.Extensive efforts have been devoted to develop new substrates for culture and differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) toward cardiac cell-based assays. A more exciting prospect is the construction of cardiac tissue for robust drug screening and cardiac tissue repairing. Here, we developed a patch method by electrospinning and crosslinking of monolayer gelatin nanofibers on a honeycomb frame made of poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA). The monolayer of the nanofibrous structure can support cells with minimal exogenous contact and a maximal efficiency of cell-medium exchange whereas a single hiPSC colony can be uniformly formed in each of the honeycomb compartments. By modulating the treatment time of the ROCK inhibitor Y-27632, the shape

Differentiation of human-induced pluripotent stem cells into insulin-producing clusters.

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Shaer, Anahita; Azarpira, Negar; Vahdati, Akbar; Karimi, Mohammad Hosein; Shariati, Mehrdad

2015-02-01

In diabetes mellitus type 1, beta cells are mostly destroyed; while in diabetes mellitus type 2, beta cells are reduced by 40% to 60%. We hope that soon, stem cells can be used in diabetes therapy via pancreatic beta cell replacement. Induced pluripotent stem cells are a kind of stem cell taken from an adult somatic cell by "stimulating" certain genes. These induced pluripotent stem cells may be a promising source of cell therapy. This study sought to produce isletlike clusters of insulin-producing cells taken from induced pluripotent stem cells. A human-induced pluripotent stem cell line was induced into isletlike clusters via a 4-step protocol, by adding insulin, transferrin, and selenium (ITS), N2, B27, fibroblast growth factor, and nicotinamide. During differentiation, expression of pancreatic β-cell genes was evaluated by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction; the morphologic changes of induced pluripotent stem cells toward isletlike clusters were observed by a light microscope. Dithizone staining was used to stain these isletlike clusters. Insulin produced by these clusters was evaluated by radio immunosorbent assay, and the secretion capacity was analyzed with a glucose challenge test. Differentiation was evaluated by analyzing the morphology, dithizone staining, real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction, and immunocytochemistry. Gene expression of insulin, glucagon, PDX1, NGN3, PAX4, PAX6, NKX6.1, KIR6.2, and GLUT2 were documented by analyzing real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Dithizone-stained cellular clusters were observed after 23 days. The isletlike clusters significantly produced insulin. The isletlike clusters could increase insulin secretion after a glucose challenge test. This work provides a model for studying the differentiation of human-induced pluripotent stem cells to insulin-producing cells.

Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells from human fetal stem cells.

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Guillot, Pascale V

2016-02-01

Pluripotency defines the ability of stem cells to differentiate into all the lineages of the three germ layers and self-renew indefinitely. Somatic cells can regain the developmental potential of embryonic stem cells following ectopic expression of a set of transcription factors or, in certain circumstances, via modulation of culture conditions and supplementation with small molecule, that is, induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. Here, we discuss the use of fetal tissues for reprogramming, focusing in particular on stem cells derived from human amniotic fluid, and the development of chemical reprogramming. We next address the advantages and disadvantages of deriving pluripotent cells from fetal tissues and the potential clinical applications. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Generation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Using RNA-Based Sendai Virus System and Pluripotency Validation of the Resulting Cell Population.

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Chichagova, Valeria; Sanchez-Vera, Irene; Armstrong, Lyle; Steel, David; Lako, Majlinda

2016-01-01

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) provide a platform for studying human disease in vitro, increase our understanding of human embryonic development, and provide clinically relevant cell types for transplantation, drug testing, and toxicology studies. Since their discovery, numerous advances have been made in order to eliminate issues such as vector integration into the host genome, low reprogramming efficiency, incomplete reprogramming and acquisition of genomic instabilities. One of the ways to achieve integration-free reprogramming is by using RNA-based Sendai virus. Here we describe a method to generate hiPSCs with Sendai virus in both feeder-free and feeder-dependent culture systems. Additionally, we illustrate methods by which to validate pluripotency of the resulting stem cell population.

Physical passaging of embryoid bodies generated from human pluripotent stem cells.

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Mi-Young Son

Full Text Available Spherical three-dimensional cell aggregates called embryoid bodies (EBs, have been widely used in in vitro differentiation protocols for human pluripotent stem cells including human embryonic stem cells (hESCs and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs. Recent studies highlight the new devices and techniques for hEB formation and expansion, but are not involved in the passaging or subculture process. Here, we provide evidence that a simple periodic passaging markedly improved hEB culture condition and thus allowed the size-controlled, mass production of human embryoid bodies (hEBs derived from both hESCs and hiPSCs. hEBs maintained in prolonged suspension culture without passaging (>2 weeks showed a progressive decrease in the cell growth and proliferation and increase in the apoptosis compared to 7-day-old hEBs. However, when serially passaged in suspension, hEB cell populations were significantly increased in number while maintaining the normal rates of cell proliferation and apoptosis and the differentiation potential. Uniform-sized hEBs produced by manual passaging using a 1∶4 split ratio have been successfully maintained for over 20 continuous passages. The passaging culture method of hEBs, which is simple, readily expandable, and reproducible, could be a powerful tool for improving a robust and scalable in vitro differentiation system of human pluripotent stem cells.

The L1TD1 Protein Interactome Reveals the Importance of Post-transcriptional Regulation in Human Pluripotency

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Maheswara Reddy Emani

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The RNA-binding protein L1TD1 is one of the most specific and abundant proteins in pluripotent stem cells and is essential for the maintenance of pluripotency in human cells. Here, we identify the protein interaction network of L1TD1 in human embryonic stem cells (hESCs and provide insights into the interactome network constructed in human pluripotent cells. Our data reveal that L1TD1 has an important role in RNA splicing, translation, protein traffic, and degradation. L1TD1 interacts with multiple stem-cell-specific proteins, many of which are still uncharacterized in the context of development. Further, we show that L1TD1 is a part of the pluripotency interactome network of OCT4, SOX2, and NANOG, bridging nuclear and cytoplasmic regulation and highlighting the importance of RNA biology in pluripotency.

Site-Specific Genome Engineering in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Merkert, Sylvia; Martin, Ulrich

2016-06-24

The possibility to generate patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) offers an unprecedented potential of applications in clinical therapy and medical research. Human iPSCs and their differentiated derivatives are tools for diseases modelling, drug discovery, safety pharmacology, and toxicology. Moreover, they allow for the engineering of bioartificial tissue and are promising candidates for cellular therapies. For many of these applications, the ability to genetically modify pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) is indispensable, but efficient site-specific and safe technologies for genetic engineering of PSCs were developed only recently. By now, customized engineered nucleases provide excellent tools for targeted genome editing, opening new perspectives for biomedical research and cellular therapies.

Genome Editing in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Carlson-Stevermer, Jared; Saha, Krishanu

2017-01-01

Genome editing in human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) enables the generation of reporter lines and knockout cell lines. Zinc finger nucleases, transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), and CRISPR/Cas9 technology have recently increased the efficiency of proper gene editing by creating double strand breaks (DSB) at defined sequences in the human genome. These systems typically use plasmids to transiently transcribe nucleases within the cell. Here, we describe the process for preparing hPSCs for transient expression of nucleases via electroporation and subsequent analysis to create genetically modified stem cell lines.

Generation of Gastrointestinal Organoids from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Múnera, Jorge O; Wells, James M

2017-01-01

Over the past several decades, developmental biologists have discovered fundamental mechanisms by which organs form in developing embryos. With this information it is now possible to generate human "organoids" by the stepwise differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells using a process that recapitulates organ development. For the gastrointestinal tract, one of the first key steps is the formation of definitive endoderm and mesoderm, a process that relies on the TGFb molecule Nodal. Endoderm is then patterned along the anterior-posterior axis, with anterior endoderm forming the foregut and posterior endoderm forming the mid and hindgut. A-P patterning of the endoderm is accomplished by the combined activities of Wnt, BMP, and FGF. High Wnt and BMP promote a posterior fate, whereas repressing these pathways promotes an anterior endoderm fate. The stomach derives from the posterior foregut and retinoic acid signaling is required for promoting a posterior foregut fate. The small and large intestine derive from the mid and hindgut, respectively.These stages of gastrointestinal development can be precisely manipulated through the temporal activation and repression of the pathways mentioned above. For example, stimulation of the Nodal pathway with the mimetic Activin A, another TGF-β superfamily member, can trigger the differentiation of pluripotent stem cells into definitive endoderm (D'Amour et al., Nat Biotechnol 23:1534-1541, 2005). Exposure of definitive endoderm to high levels of Wnt and FGF promotes the formation of posterior endoderm and mid/hindgut tissue that expresses CDX2. Mid-hindgut spheroids that are cultured in a three-dimensional matrix form human intestinal organoids (HIOs) that are small intestinal in nature Spence et al., Nature 2011. In contrast, activation of FGF and Wnt in the presence of the BMP inhibitor Noggin promotes the formation of anterior endoderm and foregut tissues that express SOX2. These SOX2-expressing foregut spheroids can be

Expression of Pluripotency Markers in Nonpluripotent Human Neural Stem and Progenitor Cells

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Vincent, P.; Benedikz, Eirikur; Uhlén, Per

2017-01-01

Nonpluripotent neural progenitor cells (NPCs) derived from the human fetal central nervous system were found to express a number of messenger RNA (mRNA) species associated with pluripotency, such as NANOG, REX1, and OCT4. The expression was restricted to small subpopulations of NPCs. In contrast...... to pluripotent stem cells, there was no coexpression of the pluripotency-associated genes studied. Although the expression of these genes rapidly declined during the in vitro differentiation of NPCs, we found no evidence that the discrete expression was associated with the markers of multipotent neural stem...... cells (CD133+/CD24lo), the capacity of sphere formation, or high cell proliferation rates. The rate of cell death among NPCs expressing pluripotency-associated genes was also similar to that of other NPCs. Live cell imaging showed that NANOG- and REX1-expressing NPCs continuously changed morphology...

Efficient cryopreservation of human pluripotent stem cells by surface-based vitrification

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Neubauer, Julia C; Beier, Axel F; Geijsen, Niels; Zimmermann, Heiko

2015-01-01

Efficient cryopreservation of human stem cells is crucial for guaranteeing a permanent supply of high-quality cell material for drug discovery or regenerative medicine. Conventionally used protocols usually employing slow freezing rates, however, result in low recovery rates for human pluripotent

Combined negative effect of donor age and time in culture on the reprogramming efficiency into induced pluripotent stem cells

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Ras Trokovic

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Somatic cells can be reprogrammed into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC by the forced expression of the transcription factors OCT4, SOX2, KLF4 and c-MYC. Pluripotent reprogramming appears as a slow and inefficient process because of genetic and epigenetic barriers of somatic cells. In this report, we have extended previous observations concerning donor age and passage number of human fibroblasts as critical determinants of the efficiency of iPSC induction. Human fibroblasts from 11 different donors of variable age were reprogrammed by ectopic expression of reprogramming factors. Although all fibroblasts gave rise to iPSC colonies, the reprogramming efficiency correlated negatively and declined rapidly with increasing donor age. In addition, the late passage fibroblasts gave less reprogrammed colonies than the early passage cell counterparts, a finding associated with the cellular senescence-induced upregulation of p21. Knockdown of p21 restored iPSC generation even in long-term passaged fibroblasts of an old donor, highlighting the central role of the p53/p21 pathway in cellular senescence induced by both donor age and culture time.

Impact of transient down-regulation of DREAM in human embryonic stem cell pluripotency

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A. Fontán-Lozano

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Little is known about the functions of downstream regulatory element antagonist modulator (DREAM in embryonic stem cells (ESCs. However, DREAM interacts with cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB in a Ca2+-dependent manner, preventing CREB binding protein (CBP recruitment. Furthermore, CREB and CBP are involved in maintaining ESC self-renewal and pluripotency. However, a previous knockout study revealed the protective function of DREAM depletion in brain aging degeneration and that aging is accompanied by a progressive decline in stem cells (SCs function. Interestingly, we found that DREAM is expressed in different cell types, including human ESCs (hESCs, human adipose-derived stromal cells (hASCs, human bone marrow-derived stromal cells (hBMSCs, and human newborn foreskin fibroblasts (hFFs, and that transitory inhibition of DREAM in hESCs reduces their pluripotency, increasing differentiation. We stipulate that these changes are partly mediated by increased CREB transcriptional activity. Overall, our data indicates that DREAM acts in the regulation of hESC pluripotency and could be a target to promote or prevent differentiation in embryonic cells.

Laser bioprinting of human induced pluripotent stem cells-the effect of printing and biomaterials on cell survival, pluripotency, and differentiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Koch, Lothar; Deiwick, Andrea; Franke, Annika; Schwanke, Kristin; Haverich, Axel; Zweigerdt, Robert; Chichkov, Boris

2018-04-25

Research on human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) is one of the fastest growing fields in biomedicine. Generated from patient's own somatic cells, hiPSCs can be differentiated towards all functional cell types and returned to the patient without immunological concerns. 3D printing of hiPSCs could enable the generation of functional organs for replacement therapies or realization of organ-on-chip systems for individualized medicine. Printing of living cells was demonstrated with immortalized cell lines, primary cells, and adult stem cells with different printing technologies and biomaterials. However, hiPSCs are more sensitive to handling procedures, in particular, when dissociated into single cells. Both pluripotency and directed differentiation are influenced by numerous environmental factors including culture media, biomaterials, and cell density. Notably, existing literature on the effect of applied biomaterials on pluripotency is rather ambiguous. In this study, laser bioprinting of undifferentiated hiPSCs in combination with different biomaterials was performed and the impact on cells' behavior, pluripotency, and differentiation was investigated. Our findings suggest that hiPSCs are indeed more sensitive to the applied biomaterials, but not to laser printing itself. With appropriate biomaterials, such as the hyaluronic acid based solutions applied in this study, hiPSCs can be successfully laser printed without losing their pluripotency.

Pluripotency and its layers of complexity

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Jolene Ooi

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Pluripotency is depicted by a self-renewing state that can competently differentiate to form the three germ layers. Different stages of early murine development can be captured on a petri dish, delineating a spectrum of pluripotent states, ranging from embryonic stem cells, embryonic germ cells to epiblast stem cells. Anomalous cell populations displaying signs of pluripotency have also been uncovered, from the isolation of embryonic carcinoma cells to the derivation of induced pluripotent stem cells. Gaining insight into the molecular circuitry within these cell types enlightens us about the significance and contribution of each stage, hence deepening our understanding of vertebrate development. In this review, we aim to describe experimental milestones that led to the understanding of embryonic development and the conception of pluripotency. We also discuss attempts at exploring the realm of pluripotency with the identification of pluripotent stem cells within mouse teratocarcinomas and embryos, and the generation of pluripotent cells through nuclear reprogramming. In conclusion, we illustrate pluripotent cells derived from other organisms, including human derivatives, and describe current paradigms in the comprehension of human pluripotency.

SON connects the splicing-regulatory network with pluripotency in human embryonic stem cells.

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Lu, Xinyi; Göke, Jonathan; Sachs, Friedrich; Jacques, Pierre-Étienne; Liang, Hongqing; Feng, Bo; Bourque, Guillaume; Bubulya, Paula A; Ng, Huck-Hui

2013-10-01

Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) harbour the ability to undergo lineage-specific differentiation into clinically relevant cell types. Transcription factors and epigenetic modifiers are known to play important roles in the maintenance of pluripotency of hESCs. However, little is known about regulation of pluripotency through splicing. In this study, we identify the spliceosome-associated factor SON as a factor essential for the maintenance of hESCs. Depletion of SON in hESCs results in the loss of pluripotency and cell death. Using genome-wide RNA profiling, we identified transcripts that are regulated by SON. Importantly, we confirmed that SON regulates the proper splicing of transcripts encoding for pluripotency regulators such as OCT4, PRDM14, E4F1 and MED24. Furthermore, we show that SON is bound to these transcripts in vivo. In summary, we connect a splicing-regulatory network for accurate transcript production to the maintenance of pluripotency and self-renewal of hESCs.

Generation of induced pluripotent stem cells with high efficiency from human embryonic renal cortical cells.

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Yao, Ling; Chen, Ruifang; Wang, Pu; Zhang, Qi; Tang, Hailiang; Sun, Huaping

2016-01-01

Reprogramming of somatic cells into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) emerges as a prospective therapeutic angle in regenerative medicine and a tool for drug screening. Although increasing numbers of iPSCs from different sources have been generated, there has been limited progress in yield of iPSC. Here, we show that four Yamanaka factors Oct4, Sox2, Klf4 and c-Myc can convert human embryonic renal cortical cells (hERCCs) to pluripotent stem cells with a roughly 40-fold higher reprogramming efficiency compared with that of adult human dermal fibroblasts. These iPSCs show pluripotency in vitro and in vivo, as evidenced by expression of pluripotency associated genes, differentiation into three embryonic germ layers by teratoma tests, as well as neuronal fate specification by embryoid body formation. Moreover, the four exogenous genes are effectively silenced in these iPSCs. This study highlights the use of hERCCs to generate highly functional human iPSCs which may aid the study of genetic kidney diseases and accelerate the development of cell-based regenerative therapy.

Definitive Endoderm Formation from Plucked Human Hair-Derived Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells and SK Channel Regulation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anett Illing

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Pluripotent stem cells present an extraordinary powerful tool to investigate embryonic development in humans. Essentially, they provide a unique platform for dissecting the distinct mechanisms underlying pluripotency and subsequent lineage commitment. Modest information currently exists about the expression and the role of ion channels during human embryogenesis, organ development, and cell fate determination. Of note, small and intermediate conductance, calcium-activated potassium channels have been reported to modify stem cell behaviour and differentiation. These channels are broadly expressed throughout human tissues and are involved in various cellular processes, such as the after-hyperpolarization in excitable cells, and also in differentiation processes. To this end, human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs generated from plucked human hair keratinocytes have been exploited in vitro to recapitulate endoderm formation and, concomitantly, used to map the expression of the SK channel (SKCa subtypes over time. Thus, we report the successful generation of definitive endoderm from hiPSCs of ectodermal origin using a highly reproducible and robust differentiation system. Furthermore, we provide the first evidence that SKCas subtypes are dynamically regulated in the transition from a pluripotent stem cell to a more lineage restricted, endodermal progeny.

Integrative analyses of human reprogramming reveal dynamic nature of induced pluripotency

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Cacchiarelli, Davide; Trapnell, Cole; Ziller, Michael J.; Soumillon, Magali; Cesana, Marcella; Karnik, Rahul; Donaghey, Julie; Smith, Zachary D.; Ratanasirintrawoot, Sutheera; Zhang, Xiaolan; Ho Sui, Shannan J.; Wu, Zhaoting; Akopian, Veronika; Gifford, Casey A.; Doench, John; Rinn, John L.; Daley, George Q.; Meissner, Alexander; Lander, Eric S.; Mikkelsen, Tarjei S.

2015-01-01

Summary Induced pluripotency is a promising avenue for disease modeling and therapy, but the molecular principles underlying this process, particularly in human cells, remain poorly understood due to donor-to-donor variability and intercellular heterogeneity. Here we constructed and characterized a clonal, inducible human reprogramming system that provides a reliable source of cells at any stage of the process. This system enabled integrative transcriptional and epigenomic analysis across the human reprogramming timeline at high resolution. We observed distinct waves of gene network activation, including the ordered reactivation of broad developmental regulators followed by early embryonic patterning genes and culminating in the emergence of a signature reminiscent of pre-implantation stages. Moreover, complementary functional analyses allowed us to identify and validate novel regulators of the reprogramming process. Altogether, this study sheds light on the molecular underpinnings of induced pluripotency in human cells and provides a robust cell platform for further studies. PMID:26186193

Electrospun polystyrene scaffolds as a synthetic substrate for xeno-free expansion and differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Leong, Meng Fatt; Lu, Hong Fang; Lim, Tze Chiun; Du, Chan; Ma, Nina K L; Wan, Andrew C A

2016-12-01

The use of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) for clinical tissue engineering applications requires expansion and differentiation of the cells using defined, xeno-free substrates. The screening and selection of suitable synthetic substrates however, is tedious, as their performance relies on the inherent material properties. In the present work, we demonstrate an alternative concept for xeno-free expansion and differentiation of hiPSCs using synthetic substrates, which hinges on the structure-function relationship between electrospun polystyrene scaffolds (ESPS) and pluripotent stem cell growth. ESPS of differential porosity was obtained by fusing the fibers at different temperatures. The more porous, loosely fused scaffolds were found to efficiently trap the cells, leading to a large number of three-dimensional (3D) aggregates which were shown to be pluripotent colonies. Immunostaining, PCR analyses, in vitro differentiation and in vivo teratoma formation studies demonstrated that these hiPSC aggregates could be cultured for up to 10 consecutive passages (P10) with maintenance of pluripotency. Flow cytometry showed that more than 80% of the cell population stained positive for the pluripotent marker OCT4 at P1, P5 and P10. P10 cells could be differentiated to neuronal-like cells and cultured within the ESPS for up to 18months. Our results suggest the usefulness of a generic class of synthetic substrates, exemplified by ESPS, for 'trapped aggregate culture' of hiPSCs. To realize the potential of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) in clinical medicine, robust, xeno-free substrates for expansion and differentiation of iPSCs are required. In the existing literature, synthetic materials have been reported that meet the requirement for non-xenogeneic substrates. However, the self-renewal and differentiation characteristics of hiPSCs are affected differently by the biocompatibility and physico-chemical properties of individual substrates. Although

Generation of Oligodendrogenic Spinal Neural Progenitor Cells From Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Khazaei, Mohamad; Ahuja, Christopher S; Fehlings, Michael G

2017-08-14

This unit describes protocols for the efficient generation of oligodendrogenic neural progenitor cells (o-NPCs) from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). Specifically, detailed methods are provided for the maintenance and differentiation of hiPSCs, human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural progenitor cells (hiPS-NPCs), and human induced pluripotent stem cell-oligodendrogenic neural progenitor cells (hiPSC-o-NPCs) with the final products being suitable for in vitro experimentation or in vivo transplantation. Throughout, cell exposure to growth factors and patterning morphogens has been optimized for both concentration and timing, based on the literature and empirical experience, resulting in a robust and highly efficient protocol. Using this derivation procedure, it is possible to obtain millions of oligodendrogenic-NPCs within 40 days of initial cell plating which is substantially shorter than other protocols for similar cell types. This protocol has also been optimized to use translationally relevant human iPSCs as the parent cell line. The resultant cells have been extensively characterized both in vitro and in vivo and express key markers of an oligodendrogenic lineage. © 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

The 'sweet' spot of cellular pluripotency: protein glycosylation in human pluripotent stem cells and its applications in regenerative medicine.

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Wang, Yu-Chieh; Lin, Victor; Loring, Jeanne F; Peterson, Suzanne E

2015-05-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) promise for the future of regenerative medicine. The structural and biochemical diversity associated with glycans makes them a unique type of macromolecule modification that is involved in the regulation of a vast array of biochemical events and cellular activities including pluripotency in hPSCs. The primary focus of this review article is to highlight recent advances in stem cell research from a glycobiological perspective. We also discuss how our understanding of glycans and glycosylation may help overcome barriers hindering the clinical application of hPSC-derived cells. A literature survey using NCBI-PubMed and Google Scholar was performed in 2014. Regenerative medicine hopes to provide novel strategies to combat human disease and tissue injury that currently lack effective therapies. Although progress in this field is accelerating, many critical issues remain to be addressed in order for cell-based therapy to become a practical and safe treatment option. Emerging evidence suggests that protein glycosylation may significantly influence the regulation of cellular pluripotency, and that the exploitation of protein glycosylation in hPSCs and their differentiated derivatives may lead to transformative and translational discoveries for regenerative medicine. In addition, hPSCs represent a novel research platform for investigating glycosylation-related disease.

A Method to Identify and Isolate Pluripotent Human Stem Cells and Mouse Epiblast Stem Cells Using Lipid Body-Associated Retinyl Ester Fluorescence

OpenAIRE

Thangaselvam Muthusamy; Odity Mukherjee; Radhika Menon; Megha Prakash Bangalore; Mitradas M. Panicker

2014-01-01

Summary We describe the use of a characteristic blue fluorescence to identify and isolate pluripotent human embryonic stem cells and human-induced pluripotent stem cells. The blue fluorescence emission (450–500 nm) is readily observed by fluorescence microscopy and correlates with the expression of pluripotency markers (OCT4, SOX2, and NANOG). It allows easy identification and isolation of undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells, high-throughput fluorescence sorting and subsequent propa...

Characterization of bovine embryos cultured under conditions appropriate for sustaining human naïve pluripotency

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brinkhof, Bas; van Tol, Helena T A; Groot Koerkamp, Marian J A; Wubbolts, Richard W; Haagsman, Henk P; Roelen, Bernard A J

2017-01-01

In mammalian preimplantation development, pluripotent cells are set aside from cells that contribute to extra-embryonic tissues. Although the pluripotent cell population of mouse and human embryos can be cultured as embryonic stem cells, little is known about the pathways involved in formation of a

CRISPR/Cas-Mediated Knockin in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Verma, Nipun; Zhu, Zengrong; Huangfu, Danwei

2017-01-01

Fluorescent reporter and epitope-tagged human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) greatly facilitate studies on the pluripotency and differentiation characteristics of these cells. Unfortunately traditional procedures to generate such lines are hampered by a low targeting efficiency that necessitates a lengthy process of selection followed by the removal of the selection cassette. Here we describe a procedure to generate fluorescent reporter and epitope tagged hPSCs in an efficient one-step process using the CRISPR/Cas technology. Although the method described uses our recently developed iCRISPR platform, the protocols can be adapted for general use with CRISPR/Cas or other engineered nucleases. The transfection procedures described could also be used for additional applications, such as overexpression or lineage tracing studies.

Comparison of the early response of human embryonic stem cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells to ionizing radiation.

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Suchorska, Wiktoria Maria; Augustyniak, Ewelina; Łukjanow, Magdalena

2017-04-01

Despite the well-demonstrated efficacy of stem cell (SC) therapy, this approach has a number of key drawbacks. One important concern is the response of pluripotent SCs to treatment with ionizing radiation (IR), given that SCs used in regenerative medicine will eventually be exposed to IR for diagnostic or treatment‑associated purposes. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to examine and compare early IR‑induced responses of pluripotent SCs to assess their radioresistance and radiosensitivity. In the present study, 3 cell lines; human embryonic SCs (hESCs), human induced pluripotent SCs (hiPSCs) and primary human dermal fibroblasts (PHDFs); were exposed to IR at doses ranging from 0 to 15 gray (Gy). Double strand breaks (DSBs), and the gene expression of the following DNA repair genes were analyzed: P53; RAD51; BRCA2; PRKDC; and XRCC4. hiPSCs demonstrated greater radioresistance, as fewer DSBs were identified, compared with hESCs. Both pluripotent SC lines exhibited distinct gene expression profiles in the most common DNA repair genes that are involved in homologous recombination, non‑homologous end‑joining and enhanced DNA damage response following IR exposure. Although hESCs and hiPSCs are equivalent in terms of capacity for pluripotency and differentiation into 3 germ layers, the results of the present study indicate that these 2 types of SCs differ in gene expression following exposure to IR. Consequently, further research is required to determine whether hiPSCs and hESCs are equally safe for application in clinical practice. The present study contributes to a greater understanding of DNA damage response (DDR) mechanisms activated in pluripotent SCs and may aid in the future development of safe SC‑based clinical protocols.

Reprogramming Methods Do Not Affect Gene Expression Profile of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Trevisan, Marta; Desole, Giovanna; Costanzi, Giulia; Lavezzo, Enrico; Palù, Giorgio; Barzon, Luisa

2017-01-20

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are pluripotent cells derived from adult somatic cells. After the pioneering work by Yamanaka, who first generated iPSCs by retroviral transduction of four reprogramming factors, several alternative methods to obtain iPSCs have been developed in order to increase the yield and safety of the process. However, the question remains open on whether the different reprogramming methods can influence the pluripotency features of the derived lines. In this study, three different strategies, based on retroviral vectors, episomal vectors, and Sendai virus vectors, were applied to derive iPSCs from human fibroblasts. The reprogramming efficiency of the methods based on episomal and Sendai virus vectors was higher than that of the retroviral vector-based approach. All human iPSC clones derived with the different methods showed the typical features of pluripotent stem cells, including the expression of alkaline phosphatase and stemness maker genes, and could give rise to the three germ layer derivatives upon embryoid bodies assay. Microarray analysis confirmed the presence of typical stem cell gene expression profiles in all iPSC clones and did not identify any significant difference among reprogramming methods. In conclusion, the use of different reprogramming methods is equivalent and does not affect gene expression profile of the derived human iPSCs.

Generation of neuropeptidergic hypothalamic neurons from human pluripotent stem cells

OpenAIRE

Merkle, Florian T.; Maroof, Asif; Wataya, Takafumi; Sasai, Yoshiki; Studer, Lorenz; Eggan, Kevin; Schier, Alexander F.

2015-01-01

Hypothalamic neurons orchestrate many essential physiological and behavioral processes via secreted neuropeptides, and are relevant to human diseases such as obesity, narcolepsy and infertility. We report the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells into many of the major types of neuropeptidergic hypothalamic neurons, including those producing pro-opiolemelanocortin, agouti-related peptide, hypocretin/orexin, melanin-concentrating hormone, oxytocin, arginine vasopressin, corticotropin...

Future perspective of induced pluripotent stem cells for diagnosis, drug screening and treatment of human diseases.

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Lian, Qizhou; Chow, Yenyen; Esteban, Miguel Angel; Pei, Duanqing; Tse, Hung-Fat

2010-07-01

Recent advances in stem cell biology have transformed the understanding of cell physiology and developmental biology such that it can now play a more prominent role in the clinical application of stem cell and regenerative medicine. Success in the generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) as well as related emerging technology on the iPS platform provide great promise in the development of regenerative medicine. Human iPS cells show almost identical properties to human embryonic stem cells (ESC) in pluripotency, but avoid many of their limitations of use. In addition, investigations into reprogramming of somatic cells to pluripotent stem cells facilitate a deeper understanding of human stem cell biology. The iPS cell technology has offered a unique platform for studying the pathogenesis of human disease, pharmacological and toxicological testing, and cell-based therapy. Nevertheless, significant challenges remain to be overcome before the promise of human iPS cell technology can be realised.

Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Differentiation into Functional Epicardial Progenitor Cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Guadix, Juan Antonio; Orlova, Valeria V.; Giacomelli, Elisa; Bellin, Milena; Ribeiro, Marcelo C.; Mummery, Christine L.; Pérez-Pomares, José M.; Passier, Robert

2017-01-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) are widely used to study cardiovascular cell differentiation and function. Here, we induced differentiation of hPSCs (both embryonic and induced) to proepicardial/epicardial progenitor cells that cover the heart during development. Addition of retinoic acid (RA)

HLA engineering of human pluripotent stem cells.

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Riolobos, Laura; Hirata, Roli K; Turtle, Cameron J; Wang, Pei-Rong; Gornalusse, German G; Zavajlevski, Maja; Riddell, Stanley R; Russell, David W

2013-06-01

The clinical use of human pluripotent stem cells and their derivatives is limited by the rejection of transplanted cells due to differences in their human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genes. This has led to the proposed use of histocompatible, patient-specific stem cells; however, the preparation of many different stem cell lines for clinical use is a daunting task. Here, we develop two distinct genetic engineering approaches that address this problem. First, we use a combination of gene targeting and mitotic recombination to derive HLA-homozygous embryonic stem cell (ESC) subclones from an HLA-heterozygous parental line. A small bank of HLA-homozygous stem cells with common haplotypes would match a significant proportion of the population. Second, we derive HLA class I-negative cells by targeted disruption of both alleles of the Beta-2 Microglobulin (B2M) gene in ESCs. Mixed leukocyte reactions and peptide-specific HLA-restricted CD8(+) T cell responses were reduced in class I-negative cells that had undergone differentiation in embryoid bodies. These B2M(-/-) ESCs could act as universal donor cells in applications where the transplanted cells do not express HLA class II genes. Both approaches used adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors for efficient gene targeting in the absence of potentially genotoxic nucleases, and produced pluripotent, transgene-free cell lines.

HLA Engineering of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Riolobos, Laura; Hirata, Roli K; Turtle, Cameron J; Wang, Pei-Rong; Gornalusse, German G; Zavajlevski, Maja; Riddell, Stanley R; Russell, David W

2013-01-01

The clinical use of human pluripotent stem cells and their derivatives is limited by the rejection of transplanted cells due to differences in their human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genes. This has led to the proposed use of histocompatible, patient-specific stem cells; however, the preparation of many different stem cell lines for clinical use is a daunting task. Here, we develop two distinct genetic engineering approaches that address this problem. First, we use a combination of gene targeting and mitotic recombination to derive HLA-homozygous embryonic stem cell (ESC) subclones from an HLA-heterozygous parental line. A small bank of HLA-homozygous stem cells with common haplotypes would match a significant proportion of the population. Second, we derive HLA class I–negative cells by targeted disruption of both alleles of the Beta-2 Microglobulin (B2M) gene in ESCs. Mixed leukocyte reactions and peptide-specific HLA-restricted CD8+ T cell responses were reduced in class I–negative cells that had undergone differentiation in embryoid bodies. These B2M−/− ESCs could act as universal donor cells in applications where the transplanted cells do not express HLA class II genes. Both approaches used adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors for efficient gene targeting in the absence of potentially genotoxic nucleases, and produced pluripotent, transgene-free cell lines. PMID:23629003

Current applications of human pluripotent stem cells: possibilities and challenges.

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Ho, Pai-Jiun; Yen, Men-Luh; Yet, Shaw-Fang; Yen, B Linju

2012-01-01

Stem cells are self-renewable cells with the differentiation capacity to develop into somatic cells with biological functions. This ability to sustain a renewable source of multi- and/or pluripotential differentiation has brought new hope to the field of regenerative medicine in terms of cell therapy and tissue engineering. Moreover, stem cells are invaluable tools as in vitro models for studying diverse fields, from basic scientific questions such as developmental processes and lineage commitment, to practical application including drug screening and testing. The stem cells with widest differentiation potential are pluripotent stem cells (PSCs), which are rare cells with the ability to generate somatic cells from all three germ layers. PSCs are considered the most optimal choice for therapeutic potential of stem cells, bringing new impetus to the field of regenerative medicine. In this article, we discuss the therapeutic potential of human PSCs (hPSCs) including human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), reviewing the current preclinical and clinical data using these stem cells. We describe the classification of different sources of hPSCs, ongoing research, and currently encountered clinical obstacles of these novel and versatile human stem cells.

Expand and Regularize Federal Funding for Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Research

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Owen-Smith, Jason; Scott, Christopher Thomas; McCormick, Jennifer B.

2012-01-01

Human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research has sparked incredible scientific and public excitement, as well as significant controversy. hESCs are pluripotent, which means, in theory, that they can be differentiated into any type of cell found in the human body. Thus, they evoke great enthusiasm about potential clinical applications. They are…

Alloimmune Responses of Humanized Mice to Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Therapeutics

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Nigel G. Kooreman

2017-08-01

Full Text Available There is growing interest in using embryonic stem cell (ESC and induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC derivatives for tissue regeneration. However, an increased understanding of human immune responses to stem cell-derived allografts is necessary for maintaining long-term graft persistence. To model this alloimmunity, humanized mice engrafted with human hematopoietic and immune cells could prove to be useful. In this study, an in-depth analysis of graft-infiltrating human lymphocytes and splenocytes revealed that humanized mice incompletely model human immune responses toward allogeneic stem cells and their derivatives. Furthermore, using an “allogenized” mouse model, we show the feasibility of reconstituting immunodeficient mice with a functional mouse immune system and describe a key role of innate immune cells in the rejection of mouse stem cell allografts.

Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes Afford New Opportunities in Inherited Cardiovascular Disease Modeling

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Daniel R. Bayzigitov

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Fundamental studies of molecular and cellular mechanisms of cardiovascular disease pathogenesis are required to create more effective and safer methods of their therapy. The studies can be carried out only when model systems that fully recapitulate pathological phenotype seen in patients are used. Application of laboratory animals for cardiovascular disease modeling is limited because of physiological differences with humans. Since discovery of induced pluripotency generating induced pluripotent stem cells has become a breakthrough technology in human disease modeling. In this review, we discuss a progress that has been made in modeling inherited arrhythmias and cardiomyopathies, studying molecular mechanisms of the diseases, and searching for and testing drug compounds using patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes.

Expression of Pluripotency Markers in Nonpluripotent Human Neural Stem and Progenitor Cells.

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Vincent, Per Henrik; Benedikz, Eirikur; Uhlén, Per; Hovatta, Outi; Sundström, Erik

2017-06-15

Nonpluripotent neural progenitor cells (NPCs) derived from the human fetal central nervous system were found to express a number of messenger RNA (mRNA) species associated with pluripotency, such as NANOG, REX1, and OCT4. The expression was restricted to small subpopulations of NPCs. In contrast to pluripotent stem cells, there was no coexpression of the pluripotency-associated genes studied. Although the expression of these genes rapidly declined during the in vitro differentiation of NPCs, we found no evidence that the discrete expression was associated with the markers of multipotent neural stem cells (CD133 + /CD24 lo ), the capacity of sphere formation, or high cell proliferation rates. The rate of cell death among NPCs expressing pluripotency-associated genes was also similar to that of other NPCs. Live cell imaging showed that NANOG- and REX1-expressing NPCs continuously changed morphology, as did the nonexpressing cells. Depletion experiments showed that after the complete removal of the subpopulations of NANOG- and REX1-expressing NPCs, the expression of these genes appeared in other NPCs within a few days. The percentage of NANOG- and REX1-expressing cells returned to that observed before depletion. Our results are best explained by a model in which there is stochastic transient expression of pluripotency-associated genes in proliferating NPCs.

Generation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells from Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells Using Sendai Virus.

Science.gov (United States)

Soares, Filipa A C; Pedersen, Roger A; Vallier, Ludovic

2016-01-01

This protocol describes the efficient isolation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from circulating blood via density gradient centrifugation and subsequent generation of integration-free human induced pluripotent stem cells. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells are cultured for 9 days to allow expansion of the erythroblast population. The erythroblasts are then used to derive human induced pluripotent stem cells using Sendai viral vectors, each expressing one of the four reprogramming factors Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, and c-Myc.

Presumed pluripotency markers UTF-1 and REX-1 are expressed in human adult testes and germ cell neoplasms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kristensen, David M; Nielsen, John E; Skakkebaek, Niels E

2008-01-01

UTF-1 and REX-1/ZFP42 are transcription factors involved in pluripotency. Because of phenotypic similarities between pluripotent embryonic stem cells and testicular germ cell tumours (TGCT) and the derivation of pluripotent cells from testes, we investigated the expression of UTF-1 and REX-1 during...... human gonadal development and in TGCT....

In Vitro Modeling of Human Germ Cell Development Using Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Yuncheng Zhao

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Summary: Due to differences across species, the mechanisms of cell fate decisions determined in mice cannot be readily extrapolated to humans. In this study, we developed a feeder- and xeno-free culture protocol that efficiently induced human pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs into PLZF+/GPR125+/CD90+ spermatogonium-like cells (SLCs. These SLCs were enriched with key genes in germ cell development such as MVH, DAZL, GFRα1, NANOS3, and DMRT1. In addition, a small fraction of SLCs went through meiosis in vitro to develop into haploid cells. We further demonstrated that this chemically defined induction protocol faithfully recapitulated the features of compromised germ cell development of PSCs with NANOS3 deficiency or iPSC lines established from patients with non-obstructive azoospermia. Taken together, we established a powerful experimental platform to investigate human germ cell development and pathology related to male infertility. : In this article, Wang and colleagues established a feeder- and xeno-free system to robustly induce human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs into spermatogonia-like cells. This chemically defined induction protocol faithfully recapitulated the features of compromised germ cell development of PSCs with NANOS3 deficiency or iPSC lines established from patients with non-obstructive azoospermia. Keywords: pluripotent stem cells, spermatogonia, infertility, non-obstructive azoospermia

Reprogramming Methods Do Not Affect Gene Expression Profile of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Marta Trevisan

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs are pluripotent cells derived from adult somatic cells. After the pioneering work by Yamanaka, who first generated iPSCs by retroviral transduction of four reprogramming factors, several alternative methods to obtain iPSCs have been developed in order to increase the yield and safety of the process. However, the question remains open on whether the different reprogramming methods can influence the pluripotency features of the derived lines. In this study, three different strategies, based on retroviral vectors, episomal vectors, and Sendai virus vectors, were applied to derive iPSCs from human fibroblasts. The reprogramming efficiency of the methods based on episomal and Sendai virus vectors was higher than that of the retroviral vector-based approach. All human iPSC clones derived with the different methods showed the typical features of pluripotent stem cells, including the expression of alkaline phosphatase and stemness maker genes, and could give rise to the three germ layer derivatives upon embryoid bodies assay. Microarray analysis confirmed the presence of typical stem cell gene expression profiles in all iPSC clones and did not identify any significant difference among reprogramming methods. In conclusion, the use of different reprogramming methods is equivalent and does not affect gene expression profile of the derived human iPSCs.

Development of Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone-Secreting Neurons from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Carina Lund

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH neurons regulate human puberty and reproduction. Modeling their development and function in vitro would be of interest for both basic research and clinical translation. Here, we report a three-step protocol to differentiate human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs into GnRH-secreting neurons. Firstly, hPSCs were differentiated to FOXG1, EMX2, and PAX6 expressing anterior neural progenitor cells (NPCs by dual SMAD inhibition. Secondly, NPCs were treated for 10 days with FGF8, which is a key ligand implicated in GnRH neuron ontogeny, and finally, the cells were matured with Notch inhibitor to bipolar TUJ1-positive neurons that robustly expressed GNRH1 and secreted GnRH decapeptide into the culture medium. The protocol was reproducible both in human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, and thus provides a translational tool for investigating the mechanisms of human puberty and its disorders.

Alternative Splicing of MBD2 Supports Self-Renewal in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Lu, Yu; Loh, Yuin-Han; Li, Hu; Cesana, Marcella; Ficarro, Scott B.; Parikh, Jignesh R.; Salomonis, Nathan; Toh, Cheng-Xu Delon; Andreadis, Stelios T.; Luckey, C. John; Collins, James J.; Daley, George Q.; Marto, Jarrod A.

2014-01-01

Summary Alternative RNA splicing (AS) regulates proteome diversity, including isoform-specific expression of several pluripotency genes. Here, we integrated global gene expression and proteomic analyses and identified a molecular signature suggesting a central role for AS in maintaining human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC) self-renewal. We demonstrate the splicing factor SFRS2 is an OCT4 target gene required for pluripotency. SFRS2 regulates AS of the methyl-CpG-binding protein MBD2, whose isoforms play opposing roles in maintenance of, and reprogramming to, pluripotency. While both MDB2a and MBD2c are enriched at the OCT4 and NANOG promoters, MBD2a preferentially interacts with repressive NuRD chromatin remodeling factors and promotes hPSC differentiation, whereas overexpression of MBD2c enhances reprogramming of fibroblasts to pluripotency. The miR-301 and miR-302 families provide additional regulation by targeting SFRS2 and MDB2a. These data suggest that OCT4, SFRS2, and MBD2 participate in a positive feedback loop, regulating proteome diversity complexity in support of hPSC self-renewal and reprogramming. PMID:24813856

The synergistic effect of 5Azadc and TSA on maintenance of pluripotency of chicken ESCs by overexpression of NANOG gene.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xiaoyan; Wang, Yingjie; Zuo, Qisheng; Li, Dong; Zhang, Wenhui; Lian, Chao; Tang, Beibei; Xiao, Tianrong; Wang, Man; Wang, Kehua; Li, Bichun; Zhang, Yani

2016-04-01

NANOG is a transcription factor that functions in embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and a key factor in maintaining pluripotency. Here, we cloned the NANOG gene promoter from the Rugao yellow chicken and constructed a dual luciferase reporter vector to detect its transcriptional activity and analyze the effects of 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (5-Azadc) and trichostatin A (TSA) on NANOG promoter activity and ESC pluripotency maintenance in vitro. NANOG transcriptional activity was enhanced when 5-Azadc and TSA were used alone or together, suggesting the possibility of elevated methylation of the CpG island in the NANOG regulatory region. When ESCs were cultured in basic medium with 5-Azadc and TSA in vitro, significantly more cell colonies were maintained in the 5-Azadc + TSA group than in the control group, which had many differentiated cells and few cell colonies after 6 d of induction. On the tenth day of induction, the cells in the control group fully differentiated and no cell colonies remained, but many cell colonies were present in the 5-Azadc + TSA group. The expression of NANOG in the cell colonies was confirmed by indirect immunofluorescence. Furthermore, ESCs could be passaged to the 12th generation under 5-Azadc and TSA treatment and maintained their pluripotency. Thus, we showed that 5-Azadc and TSA can effectively maintain chicken ESC pluripotency in vitro by increasing NANOG gene expression.

Disease modeling using human induced pluripotent stem cells: lessons from the liver.

Science.gov (United States)

Gieseck, Richard L; Colquhoun, Jennifer; Hannan, Nicholas R F

2015-01-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have the capacity to differentiate into any of the hundreds of distinct cell types that comprise the human body. This unique characteristic has resulted in considerable interest in the field of regenerative medicine, given the potential for these cells to be used to protect, repair, or replace diseased, injured, and aged cells within the human body. In addition to their potential in therapeutics, hPSCs can be used to study the earliest stages of human development and to provide a platform for both drug screening and disease modeling using human cells. Recently, the description of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hIPSCs) has allowed the field of disease modeling to become far more accessible and physiologically relevant, as pluripotent cells can be generated from patients of any genetic background. Disease models derived from hIPSCs that manifest cellular disease phenotypes have been established to study several monogenic diseases; furthermore, hIPSCs can be used for phenotype-based drug screens to investigate complex diseases for which the underlying genetic mechanism is unknown. As a result, the use of stem cells as research tools has seen an unprecedented growth within the last decade as researchers look for in vitro disease models which closely mimic in vivo responses in humans. Here, we discuss the beginnings of hPSCs, starting with isolation of human embryonic stem cells, moving into the development and optimization of hIPSC technology, and ending with the application of hIPSCs towards disease modeling and drug screening applications, with specific examples highlighting the modeling of inherited metabolic disorders of the liver. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled Linking transcription to physiology in lipodomics. Crown Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Systematic optimization of human pluripotent stem cells media using Design of Experiments

Science.gov (United States)

Marinho, Paulo A.; Chailangkarn, Thanathom; Muotri, Alysson R.

2015-05-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC) are used to study the early stages of human development in vitro and, increasingly due to somatic cell reprogramming, cellular and molecular mechanisms of disease. Cell culture medium is a critical factor for hPSC to maintain pluripotency and self-renewal. Numerous defined culture media have been empirically developed but never systematically optimized for culturing hPSC. We applied design of experiments (DOE), a powerful statistical tool, to improve the medium formulation for hPSC. Using pluripotency and cell growth as read-outs, we determined the optimal concentration of both basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and neuregulin-1 beta 1 (NRG1β1). The resulting formulation, named iDEAL, improved the maintenance and passage of hPSC in both normal and stressful conditions, and affected trimethylated histone 3 lysine 27 (H3K27me3) epigenetic status after genetic reprogramming. It also enhances efficient hPSC plating as single cells. Altogether, iDEAL potentially allows scalable and controllable hPSC culture routine in translational research. Our DOE strategy could also be applied to hPSC differentiation protocols, which often require numerous and complex cell culture media.

New Monoclonal Antibodies to Defined Cell Surface Proteins on Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Brien, Carmel M; Chy, Hun S; Zhou, Qi; Blumenfeld, Shiri; Lambshead, Jack W; Liu, Xiaodong; Kie, Joshua; Capaldo, Bianca D; Chung, Tung-Liang; Adams, Timothy E; Phan, Tram; Bentley, John D; McKinstry, William J; Oliva, Karen; McMurrick, Paul J; Wang, Yu-Chieh; Rossello, Fernando J; Lindeman, Geoffrey J; Chen, Di; Jarde, Thierry; Clark, Amander T; Abud, Helen E; Visvader, Jane E; Nefzger, Christian M; Polo, Jose M; Loring, Jeanne F; Laslett, Andrew L

2017-03-01

The study and application of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) will be enhanced by the availability of well-characterized monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) detecting cell-surface epitopes. Here, we report generation of seven new mAbs that detect cell surface proteins present on live and fixed human ES cells (hESCs) and human iPS cells (hiPSCs), confirming our previous prediction that these proteins were present on the cell surface of hPSCs. The mAbs all show a high correlation with POU5F1 (OCT4) expression and other hPSC surface markers (TRA-160 and SSEA-4) in hPSC cultures and detect rare OCT4 positive cells in differentiated cell cultures. These mAbs are immunoreactive to cell surface protein epitopes on both primed and naive state hPSCs, providing useful research tools to investigate the cellular mechanisms underlying human pluripotency and states of cellular reprogramming. In addition, we report that subsets of the seven new mAbs are also immunoreactive to human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), normal human breast subsets and both normal and tumorigenic colorectal cell populations. The mAbs reported here should accelerate the investigation of the nature of pluripotency, and enable development of robust cell separation and tracing technologies to enrich or deplete for hPSCs and other human stem and somatic cell types. Stem Cells 2017;35:626-640. © 2016 The Authors Stem Cells published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of AlphaMed Press.

Rapamycin and CHIR99021 Coordinate Robust Cardiomyocyte Differentiation From Human Pluripotent Stem Cells Via Reducing p53-Dependent Apoptosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Qiu, Xiao-Xu; Liu, Yang; Zhang, Yi-Fan; Guan, Ya-Na; Jia, Qian-Qian; Wang, Chen; Liang, He; Li, Yong-Qin; Yang, Huang-Tian; Qin, Yong-Wen; Huang, Shuang; Zhao, Xian-Xian; Jing, Qing

2017-10-02

Cardiomyocytes differentiated from human pluripotent stem cells can serve as an unexhausted source for a cellular cardiac disease model. Although small molecule-mediated cardiomyocyte differentiation methods have been established, the differentiation efficiency is relatively unsatisfactory in multiple lines due to line-to-line variation. Additionally, hurdles including line-specific low expression of endogenous growth factors and the high apoptotic tendency of human pluripotent stem cells also need to be overcome to establish robust and efficient cardiomyocyte differentiation. We used the H9-human cardiac troponin T-eGFP reporter cell line to screen for small molecules that promote cardiac differentiation in a monolayer-based and growth factor-free differentiation model. We found that collaterally treating human pluripotent stem cells with rapamycin and CHIR99021 during the initial stage was essential for efficient and reliable cardiomyocyte differentiation. Moreover, this method maintained consistency in efficiency across different human embryonic stem cell and human induced pluripotent stem cell lines without specifically optimizing multiple parameters (the efficiency in H7, H9, and UQ1 human induced pluripotent stem cells is 98.3%, 93.3%, and 90.6%, respectively). This combination also increased the yield of cardiomyocytes (1:24) and at the same time reduced medium consumption by about 50% when compared with the previous protocols. Further analysis indicated that inhibition of the mammalian target of rapamycin allows efficient cardiomyocyte differentiation through overcoming p53-dependent apoptosis of human pluripotent stem cells during high-density monolayer culture via blunting p53 translation and mitochondrial reactive oxygen species production. We have demonstrated that mammalian target of rapamycin exerts a stage-specific and multifaceted regulation over cardiac differentiation and provides an optimized approach for generating large numbers of functional

Initial Attempts of Development and Characterization of an In Vitro Blood Brain Barrier Model Derived from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Goldeman, Charlotte; Saaby, Lasse; Hall, Vanessa Jane

The human blood brain barrier has yet to be successfully replicated as an in vitro model. One of the more promising approaches has been to develop an in vitro model derived from human pluripotent stem cells. However, as promising as this model may be, a successful replication of the differentiation...... method on different kinds of pluripotent stem cell lines have yet to be accomplished. We try to approach the promising method as described by Stebbins et al. (2015) to differentiate human pluripotent stem cells into brain like endothelial cells (BECs). Five different human pluripotent stem cell lines...... configurations (mono culture, non-contact co-culture and contact co-culture) with primary rat astrocytes to induce barrier-like properties. Endothelial cell media supplemented with retinoic acid were then applied to the cells to ensure selective expansion of BECs. The different culture configurations were...

Dazlin' pluripotent stem cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Welling, M.A.

2014-01-01

Pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESCs) can be isolated from the inner cell mass (ICM) of blastocyst embryos and differentiate into all three germ layers in vitro. However, despite their similar origin, mouse embryonic stem cells represent a more naïve ICM-like pluripotent state whereas human

Influences of lamin A levels on induction of pluripotent stem cells

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Bingfeng Zuo

2012-09-01

Lamin A is an inner nuclear membrane protein that maintains nuclear structure integrity, is involved in transcription, DNA damage response and genomic stability, and also links to cell differentiation, senescence, premature aging and associated diseases. Induced pluripotent stem (iPS cells have been successfully generated from various types of cells and used to model human diseases. It remains unclear whether levels of lamin A influence reprogramming of somatic cells to pluripotent states during iPS induction. Consistently, lamin A is expressed more in differentiated than in relatively undifferentiated somatic cells, and increases in expression levels with age. Somatic cells with various expression levels of lamin A differ in their dynamics and efficiency during iPS cell induction. Cells with higher levels of lamin A show slower reprogramming and decreased efficiency to iPS cells. Furthermore, depletion of lamin A by transient shRNA accelerates iPS cell induction from fibroblasts. Reduced levels of lamin A are associated with increased expression of pluripotent genes Oct4 and Nanog, and telomerase genes Tert and Terc. On the contrary, overexpression of lamin A retards somatic cell reprogramming to iPS-like colony formation. Our data suggest that levels of lamin A influence reprogramming of somatic cells to pluripotent stem cells and that artificial silencing of lamin A facilitates iPS cell induction. These findings may have implications in enhancing rejuvenation of senescent or older cells by iPS technology and manipulating lamin A levels.

Pluri-IQ: Quantification of Embryonic Stem Cell Pluripotency through an Image-Based Analysis Software

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Tânia Perestrelo

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Image-based assays, such as alkaline phosphatase staining or immunocytochemistry for pluripotent markers, are common methods used in the stem cell field to assess pluripotency. Although an increased number of image-analysis approaches have been described, there is still a lack of software availability to automatically quantify pluripotency in large images after pluripotency staining. To address this need, we developed a robust and rapid image processing software, Pluri-IQ, which allows the automatic evaluation of pluripotency in large low-magnification images. Using mouse embryonic stem cells (mESC as a model, we combined an automated segmentation algorithm with a supervised machine-learning platform to classify colonies as pluripotent, mixed, or differentiated. In addition, Pluri-IQ allows the automatic comparison between different culture conditions. This efficient user-friendly open-source software can be easily implemented in images derived from pluripotent cells or cells that express pluripotent markers (e.g., OCT4-GFP and can be routinely used, decreasing image assessment bias.

Human testis-derived embryonic stem cell-like cells are not pluripotent, but possess potential of mesenchymal progenitors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Chikhovskaya, J. V.; Jonker, M. J.; Meissner, A.; Breit, T. M.; Repping, S.; van Pelt, A. M. M.

2012-01-01

BACKGROUND: Spontaneous in vitro transition of undifferentiated spermatogonia into the pluripotent cell state has been achieved using neonatal and adult mouse testis tissue. In an effort to establish an analogous source of human patient-specific pluripotent stem cells, several research groups have

Human testis-derived embryonic stem cell-like cells are not pluripotent, but possess potential of mesenchymal progenitors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Chikhovskaya, J.V.; Jonker, M.J.; Meissner, A.; Breit, T.M.; Repping, S.; van Pelt, A.M.M.

2012-01-01

BACKGROUND Spontaneous in vitro transition of undifferentiated spermatogonia into the pluripotent cell state has been achieved using neonatal and adult mouse testis tissue. In an effort to establish an analogous source of human patient-specific pluripotent stem cells, several research groups have

Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Generation from Blood Cells Using Sendai Virus and Centrifugation.

Science.gov (United States)

Rim, Yeri Alice; Nam, Yoojun; Ju, Ji Hyeon

2016-12-21

The recent development of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) proved that mature somatic cells can return to an undifferentiated, pluripotent state. Now, reprogramming is done with various types of adult somatic cells: keratinocytes, urine cells, fibroblasts, etc. Early experiments were usually done with dermal fibroblasts. However, this required an invasive surgical procedure to obtain fibroblasts from the patients. Therefore, suspension cells, such as blood and urine cells, were considered ideal for reprogramming because of the convenience of obtaining the primary cells. Here, we report an efficient protocol for iPSC generation from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). By plating the transduced PBMCs serially to a new, matrix-coated plate using centrifugation, this protocol can easily provide iPSC colonies. This method is also applicable to umbilical cord blood mononuclear cells (CBMCs). This study presents a simple and efficient protocol for the reprogramming of PBMCs and CBMCs.

Mechanical stimulation of cyclic tensile strain induces reduction of pluripotent related gene expressions via activation of Rho/ROCK and subsequent decreasing of AKT phosphorylation in human induced pluripotent stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Teramura, Takeshi; Takehara, Toshiyuki; Onodera, Yuta; Nakagawa, Koichi; Hamanishi, Chiaki; Fukuda, Kanji

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Mechanical stimulation is an important factor for regulation of stem cell fate. ► Cyclic stretch to human induced pluripotent stem cells activated small GTPase Rho. ► Rho-kinase activation attenuated pluripotency via inhibition of AKT activation. ► This reaction could be reproduced only by transfection of dominant active Rho. ► Rho/ROCK are important molecules in mechanotransduction and control of stemness. -- Abstract: Mechanical stimulation has been shown to regulate the proliferation and differentiation of stem cells. However, the effects of the mechanical stress on the stemness or related molecular mechanisms have not been well determined. Pluripotent stem cells such as embryonic stem (ES) cells and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are used as good materials for cell transplantation therapy and research of mammalian development, since they can self-renew infinitely and differentiate into various cell lineages. Here we demonstrated that the mechanical stimulation to human iPS cells altered alignment of actin fibers and expressions of the pluripotent related genes Nanog, POU5f1 and Sox2. In the mechanically stimulated iPS cells, small GTPase Rho was activated and interestingly, AKT phosphorylation was decreased. Inhibition of Rho-associated kinase ROCK recovered the AKT phosphorylation and the gene expressions. These results clearly suggested that the Rho/ROCK is a potent primary effector of mechanical stress in the pluripotent stem cells and it participates to pluripotency-related signaling cascades as an upper stream regulator.

[Efficient genome editing in human pluripotent stem cells through CRISPR/Cas9].

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Gai-gai; Li, Shuang; Wei, Yu-da; Zhang, Yong-xian; Ding, Qiu-rong

2015-11-01

The RNA-guided CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat)-associated Cas9 nuclease has offered a new platform for genome editing with high efficiency. Here, we report the use of CRISPR/Cas9 technology to target a specific genomic region in human pluripotent stem cells. We show that CRISPR/Cas9 can be used to disrupt a gene by introducing frameshift mutations to gene coding region; to knock in specific sequences (e.g. FLAG tag DNA sequence) to targeted genomic locus via homology directed repair; to induce large genomic deletion through dual-guide multiplex. Our results demonstrate the versatile application of CRISPR/Cas9 in stem cell genome editing, which can be widely utilized for functional studies of genes or genome loci in human pluripotent stem cells.

Modeling Treatment Response for Lamin A/C Related Dilated Cardiomyopathy in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Yee-Ki; Lau, Yee-Man; Cai, Zhu-Jun; Lai, Wing-Hon; Wong, Lai-Yung; Tse, Hung-Fat; Ng, Kwong-Man; Siu, Chung-Wah

2017-07-28

Precision medicine is an emerging approach to disease treatment and prevention that takes into account individual variability in the environment, lifestyle, and genetic makeup of patients. Patient-specific human induced pluripotent stem cells hold promise to transform precision medicine into real-life clinical practice. Lamin A/C (LMNA)-related cardiomyopathy is the most common inherited cardiomyopathy in which a substantial proportion of mutations in the LMNA gene are of nonsense mutation. PTC124 induces translational read-through over the premature stop codon and restores production of the full-length proteins from the affected genes. In this study we generated human induced pluripotent stem cells-derived cardiomyocytes from patients who harbored different LMNA mutations (nonsense and frameshift) to evaluate the potential therapeutic effects of PTC124 in LMNA -related cardiomyopathy. We generated human induced pluripotent stem cells lines from 3 patients who carried distinctive mutations (R225X, Q354X, and T518fs) in the LMNA gene. The cardiomyocytes derived from these human induced pluripotent stem cells lines reproduced the pathophysiological hallmarks of LMNA -related cardiomyopathy. Interestingly, PTC124 treatment increased the production of full-length LMNA proteins in only the R225X mutant, not in other mutations. Functional evaluation experiments on the R225X mutant further demonstrated that PTC124 treatment not only reduced nuclear blebbing and electrical stress-induced apoptosis but also improved the excitation-contraction coupling of the affected cardiomyocytes. Using cardiomyocytes derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells carrying different LMNA mutations, we demonstrated that the effect of PTC124 is codon selective. A premature stop codon UGA appeared to be most responsive to PTC124 treatment. © 2017 The Authors. Published on behalf of the American Heart Association, Inc., by Wiley.

Deriving Dorsal Spinal Sensory Interneurons from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Sandeep Gupta

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Summary: Cellular replacement therapies for neurological conditions use human embryonic stem cell (hESC- or induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC-derived neurons to replace damaged or diseased populations of neurons. For the spinal cord, significant progress has been made generating the in-vitro-derived motor neurons required to restore coordinated movement. However, there is as yet no protocol to generate in-vitro-derived sensory interneurons (INs, which permit perception of the environment. Here, we report on the development of a directed differentiation protocol to derive sensory INs for both hESCs and hiPSCs. Two developmentally relevant factors, retinoic acid in combination with bone morphogenetic protein 4, can be used to generate three classes of sensory INs: the proprioceptive dI1s, the dI2s, and mechanosensory dI3s. Critical to this protocol is the competence state of the neural progenitors, which changes over time. This protocol will facilitate developing cellular replacement therapies to reestablish sensory connections in injured patients. : In this article, Gupta and colleagues describe a robust protocol to derive spinal dorsal sensory interneurons from human pluripotent stem cells using the sequential addition of RA and BMP4. They find that neural progenitors must be in the correct competence state to respond to RA/BMP4 as dorsalizing signals. This competence state changes over time and determines the efficiency of the protocol. Keywords: spinal cord, neurons, sensory interneurons, proprioception, mechanosensation, human embryonic stem cells, induced pluripotent stem cells, directed differentiation, primate spinal cord, mouse spinal cord

Reprogramming of human fibroblasts to pluripotent stem cells using mRNA of four transcription factors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yakubov, Eduard [Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, 76100 Rehovot (Israel); Rechavi, Gidi [Cancer Research Center, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer and Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv (Israel); Rozenblatt, Shmuel [Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv (Israel); Givol, David, E-mail: david.givol@weizmann.ac.il [Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, 76100 Rehovot (Israel)

2010-03-26

Reprogramming of differentiated cells into induced pluripotent cells (iPS) was accomplished in 2006 by expressing four, or less, embryonic stem cell (ESC)-specific transcription factors. Due to the possible danger of DNA damage and the potential tumorigenicity associated with such DNA damage, attempts were made to minimize DNA integration by the vectors involved in this process without complete success. Here we present a method of using RNA transfection as a tool for reprogramming human fibroblasts to iPS. We used RNA synthesized in vitro from cDNA of the same reprogramming four transcription factors. After transfection of the RNA, we show intracellular expression and nuclear localization of the respective proteins in at least 70% of the cells. We used five consecutive transfections to support continuous protein expression resulting in the formation of iPS colonies that express alkaline phosphatase and several ESC markers and that can be expanded. This method completely avoids DNA integration and may be developed to replace the use of DNA vectors in the formation of iPS.

Human intestinal tissue with adult stem cell properties derived from pluripotent stem cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Forster, Ryan; Chiba, Kunitoshi; Schaeffer, Lorian; Regalado, Samuel G; Lai, Christine S; Gao, Qing; Kiani, Samira; Farin, Henner F; Clevers, Hans; Cost, Gregory J; Chan, Andy; Rebar, Edward J; Urnov, Fyodor D; Gregory, Philip D; Pachter, Lior; Jaenisch, Rudolf; Hockemeyer, Dirk

2014-01-01

Genetically engineered human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have been proposed as a source for transplantation therapies and are rapidly becoming valuable tools for human disease modeling. However, many applications are limited due to the lack of robust differentiation paradigms that allow for the

Pluripotent State Induction in Mouse Embryonic Fibroblast Using mRNAs of Reprogramming Factors

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Ahmed Kamel El-Sayed

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Reprogramming of somatic cells has great potential to provide therapeutic treatments for a number of diseases as well as provide insight into mechanisms underlying early embryonic development. Improvement of induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSCs generation through mRNA-based methods is currently an area of intense research. This approach provides a number of advantages over previously used methods such as DNA integration and insertional mutagenesis. Using transfection of specifically synthesized mRNAs of various pluripotency factors, we generated iPSCs from mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF cells. The genetic, epigenetic and functional properties of the iPSCs were evaluated at different times during the reprogramming process. We successfully introduced synthesized mRNAs, which localized correctly inside the cells and exhibited efficient and stable translation into proteins. Our work demonstrated a robust up-regulation and a gradual promoter de-methylation of the pluripotency markers, including non-transfected factors such as Nanog, SSEA-1 (stage-specific embryonic antigen 1 and Rex-1 (ZFP-42, zinc finger protein 42. Using embryonic stem cells (ESCs conditions to culture the iPS cells resulted in formation of ES-like colonies after approximately 12 days with only five daily repeated transfections. The colonies were positive for alkaline phosphatase and pluripotency-specific markers associated with ESCs. This study revealed the ability of pluripotency induction and generation of mouse mRNA induced pluripotent stem cells (mRNA iPSCs using transfection of specifically synthesized mRNAs of various pluripotency factors into mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF cells. These generated iPSCs exhibited molecular and functional properties similar to ESCs, which indicate that this method is an efficient and viable alternative to ESCs and can be used for further biological, developmental and therapeutic investigations.

A highly efficient method for generation of therapeutic quality human pluripotent stem cells by using naive induced pluripotent stem cells nucleus for nuclear transfer

OpenAIRE

Sanal, Madhusudana Girija

2014-01-01

Even after several years since the discovery of human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC), we are still unable to make any significant therapeutic benefits out of them such as cell therapy or generation of organs for transplantation. Recent success in somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) made it possible to generate diploid embryonic stem cells, which opens up the way to make high-quality pluripotent stem cells. However, the process is highly inefficient and hence e...

Nanotopography Promotes Pancreatic Differentiation of Human Embryonic Stem Cells and Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Jong Hyun; Kim, Hyung Woo; Cha, Kyoung Je; Han, Jiyou; Jang, Yu Jin; Kim, Dong Sung; Kim, Jong-Hoon

2016-03-22

Although previous studies suggest that nanotopographical features influence properties and behaviors of stem cells, only a few studies have attempted to derive clinically useful somatic cells from human pluripotent stem cells using nanopatterned surfaces. In the present study, we report that polystyrene nanopore-patterned surfaces significantly promote the pancreatic differentiation of human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells. We compared different diameters of nanopores and showed that 200 nm nanopore-patterned surfaces highly upregulated the expression of PDX1, a critical transcription factor for pancreatic development, leading to an approximately 3-fold increase in the percentage of differentiating PDX1(+) pancreatic progenitors compared with control flat surfaces. Furthermore, in the presence of biochemical factors, 200 nm nanopore-patterned surfaces profoundly enhanced the derivation of pancreatic endocrine cells producing insulin, glucagon, or somatostatin. We also demonstrate that nanopore-patterned surface-induced upregulation of PDX1 is associated with downregulation of TAZ, suggesting the potential role of TAZ in nanopore-patterned surface-mediated mechanotransduction. Our study suggests that appropriate cytokine treatments combined with nanotopographical stimulation could be a powerful tool for deriving a high purity of desired cells from human pluripotent stem cells.

Development of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells from human pluripotent stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Tong; Wang, Fen; Wu, Mengyao; Wang, Zack Z

2015-07-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), including human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), provide a new cell source for regenerative medicine, disease modeling, drug discovery, and preclinical toxicity screening. Understanding of the onset and the sequential process of hematopoietic cells from differentiated hPSCs will enable the achievement of personalized medicine and provide an in vitro platform for studying of human hematopoietic development and disease. During embryogenesis, hemogenic endothelial cells, a specified subset of endothelial cells in embryonic endothelium, are the primary source of multipotent hematopoietic stem cells. In this review, we discuss current status in the generation of multipotent hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells from hPSCs via hemogenic endothelial cells. We also review the achievements in direct reprogramming from non-hematopoietic cells to hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. Further characterization of hematopoietic differentiation in hPSCs will improve our understanding of blood development and expedite the development of hPSC-derived blood products for therapeutic purpose. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Efficient generation of fully reprogrammed human iPS cells via polycistronic retroviral vector and a new cocktail of chemical compounds.

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Zhonghui Zhang

Full Text Available Direct reprogramming of human somatic cells into induced pluripotent stem (iPS cells by defined transcription factors (TFs provides great potential for regenerative medicine and biomedical research. This procedure has many challenges, including low reprogramming efficiency, many partially reprogrammed colonies, somatic coding mutations in the genome, etc. Here, we describe a simple approach for generating fully reprogrammed human iPS cells by using a single polycistronic retroviral vector expressing four human TFs in a single open reading frame (ORF, combined with a cocktail containing three small molecules (Sodium butyrate, SB431542, and PD0325901. Our results demonstrate that human iPS cells generated by this approach express human ES cells markers and exhibit pluripotency demonstrated by their abilities to differentiate into the three germ layers in vitro and in vivo. Notably, this approach not only provides a much faster reprogramming process but also significantly diminishes partially reprogrammed iPS cell colonies, thus facilitating efficient isolation of desired fully reprogrammed iPS cell colonies.

A highly efficient method for generation of therapeutic quality human pluripotent stem cells by using naive induced pluripotent stem cells nucleus for nuclear transfer.

Science.gov (United States)

Sanal, Madhusudana Girija

2014-01-01

Even after several years since the discovery of human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC), we are still unable to make any significant therapeutic benefits out of them such as cell therapy or generation of organs for transplantation. Recent success in somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) made it possible to generate diploid embryonic stem cells, which opens up the way to make high-quality pluripotent stem cells. However, the process is highly inefficient and hence expensive compared to the generation of iPSC. Even with the latest SCNT technology, we are not sure whether one can make therapeutic quality pluripotent stem cell from any patient's somatic cells or by using oocytes from any donor. Combining iPSC technology with SCNT, that is, by using the nucleus of the candidate somatic cell which got reprogrammed to pluripotent state instead that of the unmodified nucleus of the candidate somatic cell, would boost the efficiency of the technique, and we would be able to generate therapeutic quality pluripotent stem cells. Induced pluripotent stem cell nuclear transfer (iPSCNT) combines the efficiency of iPSC generation with the speed and natural reprogramming environment of SCNT. The new technique may be called iPSCNT. This technique could prove to have very revolutionary benefits for humankind. This could be useful in generating organs for transplantation for patients and for reproductive cloning, especially for childless men and women who cannot have children by any other techniques. When combined with advanced gene editing techniques (such as CRISPR-Cas system) this technique might also prove useful to those who want to have healthy children but suffer from inherited diseases. The current code of ethics may be against reproductive cloning. However, this will change with time as it happened with most of the revolutionary scientific breakthroughs. After all, it is the right of every human to have healthy offspring and it is the question of

A highly efficient method for generation of therapeutic quality human pluripotent stem cells by using naive induced pluripotent stem cells nucleus for nuclear transfer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Madhusudana Girija Sanal

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Even after several years since the discovery of human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC, we are still unable to make any significant therapeutic benefits out of them such as cell therapy or generation of organs for transplantation. Recent success in somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT made it possible to generate diploid embryonic stem cells, which opens up the way to make high-quality pluripotent stem cells. However, the process is highly inefficient and hence expensive compared to the generation of iPSC. Even with the latest SCNT technology, we are not sure whether one can make therapeutic quality pluripotent stem cell from any patient’s somatic cells or by using oocytes from any donor. Combining iPSC technology with SCNT, that is, by using the nucleus of the candidate somatic cell which got reprogrammed to pluripotent state instead that of the unmodified nucleus of the candidate somatic cell, would boost the efficiency of the technique, and we would be able to generate therapeutic quality pluripotent stem cells. Induced pluripotent stem cell nuclear transfer (iPSCNT combines the efficiency of iPSC generation with the speed and natural reprogramming environment of SCNT. The new technique may be called iPSCNT. This technique could prove to have very revolutionary benefits for humankind. This could be useful in generating organs for transplantation for patients and for reproductive cloning, especially for childless men and women who cannot have children by any other techniques. When combined with advanced gene editing techniques (such as CRISPR-Cas system this technique might also prove useful to those who want to have healthy children but suffer from inherited diseases. The current code of ethics may be against reproductive cloning. However, this will change with time as it happened with most of the revolutionary scientific breakthroughs. After all, it is the right of every human to have healthy offspring and it is

Porcine Pluripotent Stem Cells Derived from IVF Embryos Contribute to Chimeric Development In Vivo.

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Binghua Xue

Full Text Available Although the pig is considered an important model of human disease and an ideal animal for the preclinical testing of cell transplantation, the utility of this model has been hampered by a lack of genuine porcine embryonic stem cells. Here, we derived a porcine pluripotent stem cell (pPSC line from day 5.5 blastocysts in a newly developed culture system based on MXV medium and a 5% oxygen atmosphere. The pPSCs had been passaged more than 75 times over two years, and the morphology of the colony was similar to that of human embryonic stem cells. Characterization and assessment showed that the pPSCs were alkaline phosphatase (AKP positive, possessed normal karyotypes and expressed classic pluripotent markers, including OCT4, SOX2 and NANOG. In vitro differentiation through embryonic body formation and in vivo differentiation via teratoma formation in nude mice demonstrated that the pPSCs could differentiate into cells of the three germ layers. The pPSCs transfected with fuw-DsRed (pPSC-FDs could be passaged with a stable expression of both DsRed and pluripotent markers. Notably, when pPSC-FDs were used as donor cells for somatic nuclear transfer, 11.52% of the reconstructed embryos developed into blastocysts, which was not significantly different from that of the reconstructed embryos derived from porcine embryonic fibroblasts. When pPSC-FDs were injected into day 4.5 blastocysts, they became involved in the in vitro embryonic development and contributed to the viscera of foetuses at day 50 of pregnancy as well as the developed placenta after the chimeric blastocysts were transferred into recipients. These findings indicated that the pPSCs were porcine pluripotent cells; that this would be a useful cell line for porcine genetic engineering and a valuable cell line for clarifying the molecular mechanism of pluripotency regulation in pigs.

Mechanical stimulation of cyclic tensile strain induces reduction of pluripotent related gene expressions via activation of Rho/ROCK and subsequent decreasing of AKT phosphorylation in human induced pluripotent stem cells

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Teramura, Takeshi, E-mail: teramura@med.kindai.ac.jp [Institute of Advanced Clinical Medicine, Kinki University, Faculty of Medicine, Osaka (Japan); Takehara, Toshiyuki; Onodera, Yuta [Institute of Advanced Clinical Medicine, Kinki University, Faculty of Medicine, Osaka (Japan); Nakagawa, Koichi; Hamanishi, Chiaki [Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Kinki University, Faculty of Medicine, Osaka (Japan); Fukuda, Kanji [Institute of Advanced Clinical Medicine, Kinki University, Faculty of Medicine, Osaka (Japan); Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Kinki University, Faculty of Medicine, Osaka (Japan)

2012-01-13

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Mechanical stimulation is an important factor for regulation of stem cell fate. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Cyclic stretch to human induced pluripotent stem cells activated small GTPase Rho. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Rho-kinase activation attenuated pluripotency via inhibition of AKT activation. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer This reaction could be reproduced only by transfection of dominant active Rho. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Rho/ROCK are important molecules in mechanotransduction and control of stemness. -- Abstract: Mechanical stimulation has been shown to regulate the proliferation and differentiation of stem cells. However, the effects of the mechanical stress on the stemness or related molecular mechanisms have not been well determined. Pluripotent stem cells such as embryonic stem (ES) cells and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are used as good materials for cell transplantation therapy and research of mammalian development, since they can self-renew infinitely and differentiate into various cell lineages. Here we demonstrated that the mechanical stimulation to human iPS cells altered alignment of actin fibers and expressions of the pluripotent related genes Nanog, POU5f1 and Sox2. In the mechanically stimulated iPS cells, small GTPase Rho was activated and interestingly, AKT phosphorylation was decreased. Inhibition of Rho-associated kinase ROCK recovered the AKT phosphorylation and the gene expressions. These results clearly suggested that the Rho/ROCK is a potent primary effector of mechanical stress in the pluripotent stem cells and it participates to pluripotency-related signaling cascades as an upper stream regulator.

Scalable cultivation of human pluripotent stem cells on chemically-defined surfaces

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Hsiung, Michael Chi-Wei

Human stem cells (SCs) are classified as self-renewing cells possessing great ability in therapeutic applications due of their ability to differentiate along any major cell lineage in the human body. Despite their restorative potential, widespread use of SCs is hampered by strenuous control issues. Along with the need for strict xeno-free environments to sustain growth in culture, current methods for growing human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) rely on platforms which impede large-scale cultivation and therapeutic delivery. Hence, any progress towards development of large-scale culture systems is severely hindered. In a concentrated effort to develop a scheme that can serve as a model precursor for large scale SC propagation in clinical use, we have explored methods for cultivating hPSCs on completely defined surfaces. We discuss novel approaches with the potential to go beyond the limitations presented by current methods. In particular, we studied the cultivation of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) on surface which underwent synthetic or chemical modification. Current methods for hPSCs rely on animal-based extracellular matrices (ECMs) such as mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) or feeders and murine sacoma cell-derived substrates to facilitate their growth. While these layers or coatings can be used to maximize the output of hPSC production, they cannot be considered for clinical use because they risk introducing foreign pathogens into culture. We have identified and developed conditions for a completely defined xeno-free substrate used for culturing hPSCs. By utilizing coupling chemistry, we can functionalize ester groups on a given surface and conjugate synthetic peptides containing the arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) motif, known for their role in cell adhesion. This method offers advantages over traditional hPSC culture by keeping the modified substrata free of xenogenic response and can be scaled up in

Engineering adolescence: maturation of human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes.

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Yang, Xiulan; Pabon, Lil; Murry, Charles E

2014-01-31

The discovery of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), including both human embryonic stem cells and human-induced pluripotent stem cells, has opened up novel paths for a wide range of scientific studies. The capability to direct the differentiation of hPSCs into functional cardiomyocytes has provided a platform for regenerative medicine, development, tissue engineering, disease modeling, and drug toxicity testing. Despite exciting progress, achieving the optimal benefits has been hampered by the immature nature of these cardiomyocytes. Cardiac maturation has long been studied in vivo using animal models; however, finding ways to mature hPSC cardiomyocytes is only in its initial stages. In this review, we discuss progress in promoting the maturation of the hPSC cardiomyocytes, in the context of our current knowledge of developmental cardiac maturation and in relation to in vitro model systems such as rodent ventricular myocytes. Promising approaches that have begun to be examined in hPSC cardiomyocytes include long-term culturing, 3-dimensional tissue engineering, mechanical loading, electric stimulation, modulation of substrate stiffness, and treatment with neurohormonal factors. Future studies will benefit from the combinatorial use of different approaches that more closely mimic nature's diverse cues, which may result in broader changes in structure, function, and therapeutic applicability.

Clinical potentials of human pluripotent stem cells.

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Mora, Cristina; Serzanti, Marialaura; Consiglio, Antonella; Memo, Maurizio; Dell'Era, Patrizia

2017-08-01

Aging, injuries, and diseases can be considered as the result of malfunctioning or damaged cells. Regenerative medicine aims to restore tissue homeostasis by repairing or replacing cells, tissues, or damaged organs, by linking and combining different disciplines including engineering, technology, biology, and medicine. To pursue these goals, the discipline is taking advantage of pluripotent stem cells (PSCs), a peculiar type of cell possessing the ability to differentiate into every cell type of the body. Human PSCs can be isolated from the blastocysts and maintained in culture indefinitely, giving rise to the so-called embryonic stem cells (ESCs). However, since 2006, it is possible to restore in an adult cell a pluripotent ESC-like condition by forcing the expression of four transcription factors with the rejuvenating reprogramming technology invented by Yamanaka. Then the two types of PSC can be differentiated, using standardized protocols, towards the cell type necessary for the regeneration. Although the use of these derivatives for therapeutic transplantation is still in the preliminary phase of safety and efficacy studies, a lot of efforts are presently taking place to discover the biological mechanisms underlying genetic pathologies, by differentiating induced PSCs derived from patients, and new therapies by challenging PSC-derived cells in drug screening.

CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Mutagenesis of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells in Defined Xeno-Free E8 Medium.

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Soh, Chew-Li; Huangfu, Danwei

2017-01-01

The recent advent of engineered nucleases including the CRISPR/Cas9 system has greatly facilitated genome manipulation in human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs). In addition to facilitating hPSC-based disease studies, the application of genome engineering in hPSCs has also opened up new avenues for cell replacement therapy. To improve consistency and reproducibility of hPSC-based studies, and to meet the safety and regulatory requirements for clinical translation, it is necessary to use a defined, xeno-free cell culture system. This chapter describes protocols for CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing in an inducible Cas9 hPSC-based system, using cells cultured in chemically defined, xeno-free E8 Medium on a recombinant human vitronectin substrate. We detail procedures for the design and transfection of CRISPR guide RNAs, colony selection, and the expansion and validation of clonal mutant lines, all within this fully defined culture condition. These methods may be applied to a wide range of genome-engineering applications in hPSCs, including those that utilize different types of site-specific nucleases such as zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs) and TALENs, and form a closer step towards clinical utility of these cells.

Robust generation and expansion of skeletal muscle progenitors and myocytes from human pluripotent stem cells.

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Shelton, Michael; Kocharyan, Avetik; Liu, Jun; Skerjanc, Ilona S; Stanford, William L

2016-05-15

Human pluripotent stem cells provide a developmental model to study early embryonic and tissue development, tease apart human disease processes, perform drug screens to identify potential molecular effectors of in situ regeneration, and provide a source for cell and tissue based transplantation. Highly efficient differentiation protocols have been established for many cell types and tissues; however, until very recently robust differentiation into skeletal muscle cells had not been possible unless driven by transgenic expression of master regulators of myogenesis. Nevertheless, several breakthrough protocols have been published in the past two years that efficiently generate cells of the skeletal muscle lineage from pluripotent stem cells. Here, we present an updated version of our recently described 50-day protocol in detail, whereby chemically defined media are used to drive and support muscle lineage development from initial CHIR99021-induced mesoderm through to PAX7-expressing skeletal muscle progenitors and mature skeletal myocytes. Furthermore, we report an optional method to passage and expand differentiating skeletal muscle progenitors approximately 3-fold every 2weeks using Collagenase IV and continued FGF2 supplementation. Both protocols have been optimized using a variety of human pluripotent stem cell lines including patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells. Taken together, our differentiation and expansion protocols provide sufficient quantities of skeletal muscle progenitors and myocytes that could be used for a variety of studies. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Human Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes as Research and Therapeutic Tools

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Ivana Acimovic

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs, namely, embryonic stem cells (ESCs and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs, with their ability of indefinite self-renewal and capability to differentiate into cell types derivatives of all three germ layers, represent a powerful research tool in developmental biology, for drug screening, disease modelling, and potentially cell replacement therapy. Efficient differentiation protocols that would result in the cell type of our interest are needed for maximal exploitation of these cells. In the present work, we aim at focusing on the protocols for differentiation of hPSCs into functional cardiomyocytes in vitro as well as achievements in the heart disease modelling and drug testing on the patient-specific iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes (iPSC-CMs.

Purification of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural precursors using magnetic activated cell sorting.

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Rodrigues, Gonçalo M C; Fernandes, Tiago G; Rodrigues, Carlos A V; Cabral, Joaquim M S; Diogo, Maria Margarida

2015-01-01

Neural precursor (NP) cells derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), and their neuronal progeny, will play an important role in disease modeling, drug screening tests, central nervous system development studies, and may even become valuable for regenerative medicine treatments. Nonetheless, it is challenging to obtain homogeneous and synchronously differentiated NP populations from hiPSCs, and after neural commitment many pluripotent stem cells remain in the differentiated cultures. Here, we describe an efficient and simple protocol to differentiate hiPSC-derived NPs in 12 days, and we include a final purification stage where Tra-1-60+ pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) are removed using magnetic activated cell sorting (MACS), leaving the NP population nearly free of PSCs.

Irradiation strongly reduces tumorigenesis of human induced pluripotent stem cells

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Inui, Shoki; Minami, Kazumasa; Ito, Emiko; Imaizumi, Hiromasa; Mori, Seiji; Koizumi, Masahiko; Fukushima, Satsuki; Miyagawa, Shigeru; Sawa, Yoshiki; Matsuura, Nariaki

2017-01-01

Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells have demonstrated they can undergo self-renewal, attain pluripotency, and differentiate into various types of functional cells. In clinical transplantation of iPS cells, however, a major problem is the prevention of tumorigenesis. We speculated that tumor formation could be inhibited by means of irradiation. Since the main purpose of this study was to explore the prevention of tumor formation in human iPS (hiPS) cells, we tested the effects of irradiation on tumor-associated factors such as radiosensitivity, pluripotency and cell death in hiPS cells. The irradiated hiPS cells showed much higher radiosensitivity, because the survival fraction of hiPS cells irradiated with 2 Gy was < 10%, and there was no change of pluripotency. Irradiation with 2 and 4 Gy caused substantial cell death, which was mostly the result of apoptosis. Irradiation with 2 Gy was detrimental enough to cause loss of proliferation capability and trigger substantial cell death in vitro. The hiPS cells irradiated with 2 Gy were injected into NOG mice (NOD/Shi-scid, IL-2 Rγnull) for the analysis of tumor formation. The group of mice into which hiPS cells irradiated with 2 Gy was transplanted showed significant suppression of tumor formation in comparison with that of the group into which non-irradiated hiPS cells were transplanted. It can be presumed that this diminished rate of tumor formation was due to loss of proliferation and cell death caused by irradiation. Our findings suggest that tumor formation following cell therapy or organ transplantation induced by hiPS cells may be prevented by irradiation.

Establishment of Human Neural Progenitor Cells from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells with Diverse Tissue Origins

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Hayato Fukusumi; Tomoko Shofuda; Yohei Bamba; Atsuyo Yamamoto; Daisuke Kanematsu; Yukako Handa; Keisuke Okita; Masaya Nakamura; Shinya Yamanaka; Hideyuki Okano; Yonehiro Kanemura

2016-01-01

Human neural progenitor cells (hNPCs) have previously been generated from limited numbers of human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) clones. Here, 21 hiPSC clones derived from human dermal fibroblasts, cord blood cells, and peripheral blood mononuclear cells were differentiated using two neural induction methods, an embryoid body (EB) formation-based method and an EB formation method using dual SMAD inhibitors (dSMADi). Our results showed that expandable hNPCs could be generated from hiPS...

A protocol to assess cell cycle and apoptosis in human and mouse pluripotent cells

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Edel Michael J

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Embryonic stem cells (ESC and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs present a great opportunity to treat and model human disease as a cell replacement therapy. There is a growing pressure to understand better the signal transduction pathways regulating pluripotency and self-renewal of these special cells in order to deliver a safe and reliable cell based therapy in the near future. Many signal transduction pathways converge on two major cell functions associated with self-renewal and pluripotency: control of the cell cycle and apoptosis, although a standard method is lacking across the field. Here we present a detailed protocol to assess the cell cycle and apoptosis of ESC and iPSCs as a single reference point offering an easy to use standard approach across the field.

Characterizing the radioresponse of pluripotent and multipotent human stem cells.

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Mary L Lan

Full Text Available The potential capability of stem cells to restore functionality to diseased or aged tissues has prompted a surge of research, but much work remains to elucidate the response of these cells to genotoxic agents. To more fully understand the impact of irradiation on different stem cell types, the present study has analyzed the radioresponse of human pluripotent and multipotent stem cells. Human embryonic stem (ES cells, human induced pluripotent (iPS cells, and iPS-derived human neural stem cells (iPS-hNSCs cells were irradiated and analyzed for cell survival parameters, differentiation, DNA damage and repair and oxidative stress at various times after exposure. While irradiation led to dose-dependent reductions in survival, the fraction of surviving cells exhibited dose-dependent increases in metabolic activity. Irradiation did not preclude germ layer commitment of ES cells, but did promote neuronal differentiation. ES cells subjected to irradiation exhibited early apoptosis and inhibition of cell cycle progression, but otherwise showed normal repair of DNA double-strand breaks. Cells surviving irradiation also showed acute and persistent increases in reactive oxygen and nitrogen species that were significant at nearly all post-irradiation times analyzed. We suggest that stem cells alter their redox homeostasis to adapt to adverse conditions and that radiation-induced oxidative stress plays a role in regulating the function and fate of stem cells within tissues compromised by radiation injury.

Expanding the Tissue Toolbox : Deriving Colon Tissue from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Bruens, Lotte; Snippert, Hugo J.G.

2017-01-01

Organoid technology holds great potential for disease modeling and regenerative medicine. In this issue of Cell Stem Cell, Múnera et al. (2017) establish the generation of pluripotent stem cell-derived colon organoids that upon transplantation in mice, resembling human colon to a large extent,

Cardiotoxicity evaluation using human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes.

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Zhao, Qi; Wang, Xijie; Wang, Shuyan; Song, Zheng; Wang, Jiaxian; Ma, Jing

2017-03-09

Cardiotoxicity remains an important concern in drug discovery. Human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs) have become an attractive platform to evaluate cardiotoxicity. However, the consistency between human embryonic stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hESC-CMs) and human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) in prediction of cardiotoxicity has yet to be elucidated. Here we screened the toxicities of four representative drugs (E-4031, isoprenaline, quinidine, and haloperidol) using both hESC-CMs and hiPSC-CMs, combined with an impedance-based bioanalytical method. It showed that both hESC-CMs and hiPSC-CMs can recapitulate cardiotoxicity and identify the effects of well-characterized compounds. The combined platform of hPSC-CMs and an impedance-based bioanalytical method could improve preclinical cardiotoxicity screening, holding great potential for increasing drug development accuracy.

Robust Differentiation of mRNA-Reprogrammed Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Toward a Retinal Lineage.

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Sridhar, Akshayalakshmi; Ohlemacher, Sarah K; Langer, Kirstin B; Meyer, Jason S

2016-04-01

The derivation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) from patient-specific sources has allowed for the development of novel approaches to studies of human development and disease. However, traditional methods of generating hiPSCs involve the risks of genomic integration and potential constitutive expression of pluripotency factors and often exhibit low reprogramming efficiencies. The recent description of cellular reprogramming using synthetic mRNA molecules might eliminate these shortcomings; however, the ability of mRNA-reprogrammed hiPSCs to effectively give rise to retinal cell lineages has yet to be demonstrated. Thus, efforts were undertaken to test the ability and efficiency of mRNA-reprogrammed hiPSCs to yield retinal cell types in a directed, stepwise manner. hiPSCs were generated from human fibroblasts via mRNA reprogramming, with parallel cultures of isogenic human fibroblasts reprogrammed via retroviral delivery of reprogramming factors. New lines of mRNA-reprogrammed hiPSCs were established and were subsequently differentiated into a retinal fate using established protocols in a directed, stepwise fashion. The efficiency of retinal differentiation from these lines was compared with retroviral-derived cell lines at various stages of development. On differentiation, mRNA-reprogrammed hiPSCs were capable of robust differentiation to a retinal fate, including the derivation of photoreceptors and retinal ganglion cells, at efficiencies often equal to or greater than their retroviral-derived hiPSC counterparts. Thus, given that hiPSCs derived through mRNA-based reprogramming strategies offer numerous advantages owing to the lack of genomic integration or constitutive expression of pluripotency genes, such methods likely represent a promising new approach for retinal stem cell research, in particular, those for translational applications. In the current report, the ability to derive mRNA-reprogrammed human induced pluripotent stem cells (hi

Is Human-induced Pluripotent Stem Cell the Best Optimal?

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Feng Wang; Jie Kong; Yi-Yao Cui; Peng Liu; Jian-Yan Wen

2018-01-01

Objective: Since the advent of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology a decade ago, enormous progress has been made in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine. Human iPSCs have been widely used for disease modeling, drug discovery, and cell therapy development. In this review, we discuss the progress in applications of iPSC technology that are particularly relevant to drug discovery and regenerative medicine, and consider the remaining challenges and the emerging opportunities in...

Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Differentiation into Functional Epicardial Progenitor Cells

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Juan Antonio Guadix

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Summary: Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs are widely used to study cardiovascular cell differentiation and function. Here, we induced differentiation of hPSCs (both embryonic and induced to proepicardial/epicardial progenitor cells that cover the heart during development. Addition of retinoic acid (RA and bone morphogenetic protein 4 (BMP4 promoted expression of the mesodermal marker PDGFRα, upregulated characteristic (proepicardial progenitor cell genes, and downregulated transcription of myocardial genes. We confirmed the (proepicardial-like properties of these cells using in vitro co-culture assays and in ovo grafting of hPSC-epicardial cells into chick embryos. Our data show that RA + BMP4-treated hPSCs differentiate into (proepicardial-like cells displaying functional properties (adhesion and spreading over the myocardium of their in vivo counterpart. The results extend evidence that hPSCs are an excellent model to study (proepicardial differentiation into cardiovascular cells in human development and evaluate their potential for cardiac regeneration. : The authors have shown that hPSCs can be instructed in vitro to differentiate into a specific cardiac embryonic progenitor cell population called the proepicardium. Proepicardial cells are required for normal formation of the heart during development and might contribute to the development of cell-based therapies for heart repair. Keywords: human pluripotent stem cells, proepicardium, progenitor cells, cardiovascular, differentiation

A Simple and Efficient Method of Slow Freezing for Human Embryonic Stem Cells and Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Imaizumi, Keitaro; Iha, Momoe; Nishishita, Naoki; Kawamata, Shin; Nishikawa, Shinichi; Akuta, Teruo

2016-01-01

Protocols available for the cryopreservation of human embryonic stem (ES) and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are very inefficient and laborious compared to those for the cryopreservation of murine ES/iPS cells or other general cell lines. While the vitrification method may be adequate when working with small numbers of human ES/iPS cells, it requires special skills and is unsuitable when working with large cell numbers. Here, we describe a simple and efficient method for the cryopreservation of hES/hiPS cells that is based on a conventional slow freezing method that uses a combination of Pronase/EDTA for Stem™ and CP-5E™ [final concentrations: 6 % hydroxyethyl starch, 5 % DMSO, and 5 % ethylene glycol in saline]. CP-5E™ is highly effective for the cryopreservation of small cell clumps produced by hES/hiPS colony detachment in the presence of Pronase and EDTA (Pronase/EDTA for Stem™, a formulation containing multiple digestive enzymes from Streptomyces griseus). This novel method would be quite useful for large-scale hES/iPS cell banking for use in clinical applications.

Perspectives for induced pluripotent stem cell technology: new insights into human physiology involved in somatic mosaicism.

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Nagata, Naoki; Yamanaka, Shinya

2014-01-31

Induced pluripotent stem cell technology makes in vitro reprogramming of somatic cells from individuals with various genetic backgrounds possible. By applying this technology, it is possible to produce pluripotent stem cells from biopsy samples of arbitrarily selected individuals with various genetic backgrounds and to subsequently maintain, expand, and stock these cells. From these induced pluripotent stem cells, target cells and tissues can be generated after certain differentiation processes. These target cells/tissues are expected to be useful in regenerative medicine, disease modeling, drug screening, toxicology testing, and proof-of-concept studies in drug development. Therefore, the number of publications concerning induced pluripotent stem cells has recently been increasing rapidly, demonstrating that this technology has begun to infiltrate many aspects of stem cell biology and medical applications. In this review, we discuss the perspectives of induced pluripotent stem cell technology for modeling human diseases. In particular, we focus on the cloning event occurring through the reprogramming process and its ability to let us analyze the development of complex disease-harboring somatic mosaicism.

Derivation of Skeletal Myogenic Precursors from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells Using Conditional Expression of PAX7.

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Darabi, Radbod; Perlingeiro, Rita C R

2016-01-01

Cell-based therapies are considered as one of the most promising approaches for the treatment of degenerating pathologies including muscle disorders and dystrophies. Advances in the approach of reprogramming somatic cells into induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells allow for the possibility of using the patient's own pluripotent cells to generate specific tissues for autologous transplantation. In addition, patient-specific tissue derivatives have been shown to represent valuable material for disease modeling and drug discovery. Nevertheless, directed differentiation of pluripotent stem cells into a specific lineage is not a trivial task especially in the case of skeletal myogenesis, which is generally poorly recapitulated during the in vitro differentiation of pluripotent stem cells.Here, we describe a practical and efficient method for the derivation of skeletal myogenic precursors from differentiating human pluripotent stem cells using controlled expression of PAX7. Flow cytometry (FACS) purified myogenic precursors can be expanded exponentially and differentiated in vitro into myotubes, enabling researchers to use these cells for disease modeling as well as therapeutic purposes.

One-step derivation of mesenchymal stem cell (MSC-like cells from human pluripotent stem cells on a fibrillar collagen coating.

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Yongxing Liu

Full Text Available Controlled differentiation of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs into cells that resemble adult mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs is an attractive approach to obtain a readily available source of progenitor cells for tissue engineering. The present study reports a new method to rapidly derive MSC-like cells from hESCs and hiPSCs, in one step, based on culturing the cells on thin, fibrillar, type I collagen coatings that mimic the structure of physiological collagen. Human H9 ESCs and HDFa-YK26 iPSCs were singly dissociated in the presence of ROCK inhibitor Y-27632, plated onto fibrillar collagen coated plates and cultured in alpha minimum essential medium (alpha-MEM supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum, 50 uM magnesium L-ascorbic acid phosphate and 100 nM dexamethasone. While fewer cells attached on the collagen surface initially than standard tissue culture plastic, after culturing for 10 days, resilient colonies of homogenous spindle-shaped cells were obtained. Flow cytometric analysis showed that a high percentage of the derived cells expressed typical MSC surface markers including CD73, CD90, CD105, CD146 and CD166 and were negative as expected for hematopoietic markers CD34 and CD45. The MSC-like cells derived from pluripotent cells were successfully differentiated in vitro into three different lineages: osteogenic, chondrogenic, and adipogenic. Both H9 hES and YK26 iPS cells displayed similar morphological changes during the derivation process and yielded MSC-like cells with similar properties. In conclusion, this study demonstrates that bioimimetic, fibrillar, type I collagen coatings applied to cell culture plates can be used to guide a rapid, efficient derivation of MSC-like cells from both human ES and iPS cells.

Qualitative modeling identifies IL-11 as a novel regulator in maintaining self-renewal in human pluripotent stem cells

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Hedi ePeterson

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Pluripotency in human embryonic stem cells (hESCs and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs is regulated by three transcription factors - OCT3/4, SOX2 and NANOG. To fully exploit the therapeutic potential of these cells it is essential to have a good mechanistic understanding of the maintenance of self-renewal and pluripotency. In this study, we demonstrate a powerful systems biology approach in which we first expand literature-based network encompassing the core regulators of pluripotency by assessing the behaviour of genes targeted by perturbation experiments. We focused our attention on highly regulated genes encoding cell surface and secreted proteins as these can be more easily manipulated by the use of inhibitors or recombinant proteins. Qualitative modeling based on combining boolean networks and in silico perturbation experiments were employed to identify novel pluripotency-regulating genes. We validated Interleukin-11 (IL-11 and demonstrate that this cytokine is a novel pluripotency-associated factor capable of supporting self-renewal in the absence of exogenously added bFGF in culture. To date, the various protocols for hESCs maintenance require supplementation with bFGF to activate the Activin/Nodal branch of the TGFβ signaling pathway. Additional evidence supporting our findings is that IL-11 belongs to the same protein family as LIF, which is known to be necessary for maintaining pluripotency in mouse but not in human ESCs. These cytokines operate through the same gp130 receptor which interacts with Janus kinases. Our finding might explain why mESCs are in a more naïve cell state compared to hESCs and how to convert primed hESCs back to the naïve state. Taken together, our integrative modeling approach has identified novel genes as putative candidates to be incorporated into the expansion of the current gene regulatory network responsible for inducing and maintaining pluripotency.

Lumen Formation Is an Intrinsic Property of Isolated Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Kenichiro Taniguchi

2015-12-01

Full Text Available We demonstrate that dissociated human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs are intrinsically programmed to form lumens. PSCs form two-cell cysts with a shared apical domain within 20 hr of plating; these cysts collapse to form monolayers after 5 days. Expression of pluripotency markers is maintained throughout this time. In two-cell cysts, an apical domain, marked by EZRIN and atypical PKCζ, is surrounded by apically targeted organelles (early endosomes and Golgi. Molecularly, actin polymerization, regulated by ARP2/3 and mammalian diaphanous-related formin 1 (MDIA, promotes lumen formation, whereas actin contraction, mediated by MYOSIN-II, inhibits this process. Finally, we show that lumenal shape can be manipulated in bioengineered micro-wells. Since lumen formation is an indispensable step in early mammalian development, this system can provide a powerful model for investigation of this process in a controlled environment. Overall, our data establish that lumenogenesis is a fundamental cell biological property of human PSCs.

Human Ocular Epithelial Cells Endogenously Expressing SOX2 and OCT4 Yield High Efficiency of Pluripotency Reprogramming.

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Ming-Wai Poon

Full Text Available A variety of pluripotency reprogramming frequencies from different somatic cells has been observed, indicating cell origin is a critical contributor for efficiency of pluripotency reprogramming. Identifying the cell sources for efficient induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs generation, and defining its advantages or disadvantages on reprogramming, is therefore important. Human ocular tissue-derived conjunctival epithelial cells (OECs exhibited endogenous expression of reprogramming factors OCT4A (the specific OCT 4 isoform on pluripotency reprogramming and SOX2. We therefore determined whether OECs could be used for high efficiency of iPSCs generation. We compared the endogenous expression levels of four pluripotency factors and the pluripotency reprograming efficiency of human OECs with that of ocular stromal cells (OSCs. Real-time PCR, microarray analysis, Western blotting and immunostaining assays were employed to compare OECiPSCs with OSCiPSCs on molecular bases of reprogramming efficiency and preferred lineage-differentiation potential. Using the traditional KMOS (KLF4, C-MYC, OCT4 and SOX2 reprogramming protocol, we confirmed that OECs, endogenously expressing reprogramming factors OCT4A and SOX2, yield very high efficiency of iPSCs generation (~1.5%. Furthermore, higher efficiency of retinal pigmented epithelial differentiation (RPE cells was observed in OECiPSCs compared to OSCiPSCs or skin fibroblast iMR90iPSCs. The findings in this study suggest that conjunctival-derived epithelial (OECs cells can be easier converted to iPSCs than conjunctival-derived stromal cells (OSCs. This cell type may also have advantages in retinal pigmented epithelial differentiation.

Human Ocular Epithelial Cells Endogenously Expressing SOX2 and OCT4 Yield High Efficiency of Pluripotency Reprogramming.

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Poon, Ming-Wai; He, Jia; Fang, Xiaowei; Zhang, Zhao; Wang, Weixin; Wang, Junwen; Qiu, Fangfang; Tse, Hung-Fat; Li, Wei; Liu, Zuguo; Lian, Qizhou

2015-01-01

A variety of pluripotency reprogramming frequencies from different somatic cells has been observed, indicating cell origin is a critical contributor for efficiency of pluripotency reprogramming. Identifying the cell sources for efficient induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) generation, and defining its advantages or disadvantages on reprogramming, is therefore important. Human ocular tissue-derived conjunctival epithelial cells (OECs) exhibited endogenous expression of reprogramming factors OCT4A (the specific OCT 4 isoform on pluripotency reprogramming) and SOX2. We therefore determined whether OECs could be used for high efficiency of iPSCs generation. We compared the endogenous expression levels of four pluripotency factors and the pluripotency reprograming efficiency of human OECs with that of ocular stromal cells (OSCs). Real-time PCR, microarray analysis, Western blotting and immunostaining assays were employed to compare OECiPSCs with OSCiPSCs on molecular bases of reprogramming efficiency and preferred lineage-differentiation potential. Using the traditional KMOS (KLF4, C-MYC, OCT4 and SOX2) reprogramming protocol, we confirmed that OECs, endogenously expressing reprogramming factors OCT4A and SOX2, yield very high efficiency of iPSCs generation (~1.5%). Furthermore, higher efficiency of retinal pigmented epithelial differentiation (RPE cells) was observed in OECiPSCs compared to OSCiPSCs or skin fibroblast iMR90iPSCs. The findings in this study suggest that conjunctival-derived epithelial (OECs) cells can be easier converted to iPSCs than conjunctival-derived stromal cells (OSCs). This cell type may also have advantages in retinal pigmented epithelial differentiation.

Markers of Pluripotency in Human Amniotic Epithelial Cells and Their Differentiation to Progenitor of Cortical Neurons

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García-Castro, Irma Lydia; García-López, Guadalupe; Ávila-González, Daniela; Flores-Herrera, Héctor; Molina-Hernández, Anayansi; Portillo, Wendy; Ramón-Gallegos, Eva; Díaz, Néstor Fabián

2015-01-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC) have promise for regenerative medicine due to their auto-renovation and differentiation capacities. Nevertheless, there are several ethical and methodological issues about these cells that have not been resolved. Human amniotic epithelial cells (hAEC) have been proposed as source of pluripotent stem cells. Several groups have studied hAEC but have reported inconsistencies about their pluripotency properties. The aim of the present study was the in vitro characterization of hAEC collected from a Mexican population in order to identify transcription factors involved in the pluripotency circuitry and to determine their epigenetic state. Finally, we evaluated if these cells differentiate to cortical progenitors. We analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively the expression of the transcription factors of pluripotency (OCT4, SOX2, NANOG, KLF4 and REX1) by RT-PCR and RT-qPCR in hAEC. Also, we determined the presence of OCT4, SOX2, NANOG, SSEA3, SSEA4, TRA-1-60, E-cadherin, KLF4, TFE3 as well as the proliferation and epigenetic state by immunocytochemistry of the cells. Finally, hAEC were differentiated towards cortical progenitors using a protocol of two stages. Here we show that hAEC, obtained from a Mexican population and cultured in vitro (P0-P3), maintained the expression of several markers strongly involved in pluripotency maintenance (OCT4, SOX2, NANOG, TFE3, KLF4, SSEA3, SSEA4, TRA-1-60 and E-cadherin). Finally, when hAEC were treated with growth factors and small molecules, they expressed markers characteristic of cortical progenitors (TBR2, OTX2, NeuN and β-III-tubulin). Our results demonstrated that hAEC express naïve pluripotent markers (KLF4, REX1 and TFE3) as well as the cortical neuron phenotype after differentiation. This highlights the need for further investigation of hAEC as a possible source of hPSC. PMID:26720151

Establishment of human induced pluripotent stem cell lines from normal fibroblast TIG-1.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumazaki, Tsutomu; Kurata, Sayaka; Matsuo, Taira; Mitsui, Youji; Takahashi, Tomoko

2011-06-01

Normal human cells have a replicative life span and therefore senesce. Usually, normal human cell strains are differentiated cells and reach a terminally differentiated state after a number of cell divisions. At present, definitive differences are not known between replicative senescence and terminal differentiation. TIG-1 is a human fibroblast strain established from fetal lung and has been used extensively in studies of cellular senescence, and numerous data were accumulated at the molecular level. Recently, a method for generating induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) was developed. Using the method, we introduced four reprogramming genes to TIG-1 fibroblasts and succeeded in isolating colonies that had embryonic stem cell (ESC)-like morphologies. They showed alkaline phosphatase activity and expressed ESC markers, as shown by immunostaining of OCT4, SOX2, SSEA4, and TRA-1-81 as well as reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for OCT4 and NANOG transcripts. Thus, we succeeded in establishing iPSC clones from TIG-1. The iPSC clones could differentiate to cells originated from all three germ-cell layers, as shown by RT-PCR, for messenger RNA (mRNA) expression of α-fetoprotein (endoderm), MSX1 (mesoderm) and microtubule-associated protein 2 (ectoderm), and by immunostaining for α-fetoprotein (endoderm), α-smooth muscle actin (mesoderm), and β-III-tubulin (ectoderm). The iPSCs formed teratoma containing the structures developed from all three germ-cell layers in severe combined immune-deficiency mice. Thus, by comparing the aging process of parental TIG-1 cells and the differentiation process of iPSC-derived fibrocytes to fibroblasts, we can reveal the exact differences in processes between senescence and terminal differentiation.

Human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes from cardiac progenitor cells: effects of selective ion channel blockade.

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Altomare, Claudia; Pianezzi, Enea; Cervio, Elisabetta; Bolis, Sara; Biemmi, Vanessa; Benzoni, Patrizia; Camici, Giovanni G; Moccetti, Tiziano; Barile, Lucio; Vassalli, Giuseppe

2016-12-01

Human-induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived cardiomyocytes are likely to revolutionize electrophysiological approaches to arrhythmias. Recent evidence suggests the somatic cell origin of hiPSCs may influence their differentiation potential. Owing to their cardiomyogenic potential, cardiac-stromal progenitor cells (CPCs) are an interesting cellular source for generation of hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes. The effect of ionic current blockade in hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes generated from CPCs has not been characterized yet. Human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes were generated from adult CPCs and skin fibroblasts from the same individuals. The effect of selective ionic current blockade on spontaneously beating hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes was assessed using multi-electrode arrays. Cardiac-stromal progenitor cells could be reprogrammed into hiPSCs, then differentiated into hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes. Human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes of cardiac origin showed higher upregulation of cardiac-specific genes compared with those of fibroblastic origin. Human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes of both somatic cell origins exhibited sensitivity to tetrodotoxin, a blocker of Na +  current (I Na ), nifedipine, a blocker of L-type Ca 2+  current (I CaL ), and E4031, a blocker of the rapid component of delayed rectifier K +  current (I Kr ). Human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes of cardiac origin exhibited sensitivity to JNJ303, a blocker of the slow component of delayed rectifier K +  current (I Ks ). In hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes of cardiac origin, I Na , I CaL , I Kr , and I Ks were present as tetrodotoxin-, nifedipine-, E4031-, and JNJ303-sensitive currents, respectively. Although cardiac differentiation efficiency was improved in hiPSCs of cardiac vs. non-cardiac origin, no major functional differences were observed between hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes of different somatic

Fluorescent Reporters in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells: Contributions to Cardiac Differentiation and Their Applications in Cardiac Disease and Toxicity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

den Hartogh, Sabine C.; Passier, Petrus Christianus Johannes Josephus

2016-01-01

In the last decade, since the first report of induced pluripotent stem cells, the stem cell field has made remarkable progress in the differentiation to specialized cell-types of various tissues and organs, including the heart. Cardiac lineage- and tissue-specific human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC)

Pluripotent stem cells reveal the developmental biology of human megakaryocytes and provide a source of platelets for clinical application.

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Takayama, Naoya; Eto, Koji

2012-10-01

Human pluripotent stem cells [PSCs; including human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs)] can infinitely proliferate in vitro and are easily accessible for gene manipulation. Megakaryocytes (MKs) and platelets can be created from human ESCs and iPSCs in vitro and represent a potential source of blood cells for transfusion and a promising tool for studying the human thrombopoiesis. Moreover, disease-specific iPSCs are a powerful tool for elucidating the pathogenesis of hematological diseases and for drug screening. In that context, we and other groups have developed in vitro MK and platelet differentiation systems from human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs). Combining this co-culture system with a drug-inducible gene expression system enabled us to clarify the novel role played by c-MYC during human thrombopoiesis. In the next decade, technical advances (e.g., high-throughput genomic sequencing) will likely enable the identification of numerous gene mutations associated with abnormal thrombopoiesis. Combined with such technology, an in vitro system for differentiating human PSCs into MKs and platelets could provide a novel platform for studying human gene function associated with thrombopoiesis.

Modeling human neurological disorders with induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Imaizumi, Yoichi; Okano, Hideyuki

2014-05-01

Human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells obtained by reprogramming technology are a source of great hope, not only in terms of applications in regenerative medicine, such as cell transplantation therapy, but also for modeling human diseases and new drug development. In particular, the production of iPS cells from the somatic cells of patients with intractable diseases and their subsequent differentiation into cells at affected sites (e.g., neurons, cardiomyocytes, hepatocytes, and myocytes) has permitted the in vitro construction of disease models that contain patient-specific genetic information. For example, disease-specific iPS cells have been established from patients with neuropsychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia and autism, as well as from those with neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease. A multi-omics analysis of neural cells originating from patient-derived iPS cells may thus enable investigators to elucidate the pathogenic mechanisms of neurological diseases that have heretofore been unknown. In addition, large-scale screening of chemical libraries with disease-specific iPS cells is currently underway and is expected to lead to new drug discovery. Accordingly, this review outlines the progress made via the use of patient-derived iPS cells toward the modeling of neurological disorders, the testing of existing drugs, and the discovery of new drugs. The production of human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells from the patients' somatic cells and their subsequent differentiation into specific cells have permitted the in vitro construction of disease models that contain patient-specific genetic information. Furthermore, innovations of gene-editing technologies on iPS cells are enabling new approaches for illuminating the pathogenic mechanisms of human diseases. In this review article, we outlined the current status of neurological diseases-specific iPS cell research and described recently obtained

Establishment of automated culture system for murine induced pluripotent stem cells

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Koike Hiroyuki

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Induced pluripotent stem (iPS cells can differentiate into any cell type, which makes them an attractive resource in fields such as regenerative medicine, drug screening, or in vitro toxicology. The most important prerequisite for these industrial applications is stable supply and uniform quality of iPS cells. Variation in quality largely results from differences in handling skills between operators in laboratories. To minimize these differences, establishment of an automated iPS cell culture system is necessary. Results We developed a standardized mouse iPS cell maintenance culture, using an automated cell culture system housed in a CO2 incubator commonly used in many laboratories. The iPS cells propagated in a chamber uniquely designed for automated culture and showed specific colony morphology, as for manual culture. A cell detachment device in the system passaged iPS cells automatically by dispersing colonies to single cells. In addition, iPS cells were passaged without any change in colony morphology or expression of undifferentiated stem cell markers during the 4 weeks of automated culture. Conclusions Our results show that use of this compact, automated cell culture system facilitates stable iPS cell culture without obvious effects on iPS cell pluripotency or colony-forming ability. The feasibility of iPS cell culture automation may greatly facilitate the use of this versatile cell source for a variety of biomedical applications.

Retinal Ganglion Cell Diversity and Subtype Specification from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Kirstin B. Langer

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Summary: Retinal ganglion cells (RGCs are the projection neurons of the retina and transmit visual information to postsynaptic targets in the brain. While this function is shared among nearly all RGCs, this class of cell is remarkably diverse, comprised of multiple subtypes. Previous efforts have identified numerous RGC subtypes in animal models, but less attention has been paid to human RGCs. Thus, efforts of this study examined the diversity of RGCs differentiated from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs and characterized defined subtypes through the expression of subtype-specific markers. Further investigation of these subtypes was achieved using single-cell transcriptomics, confirming the combinatorial expression of molecular markers associated with these subtypes, and also provided insight into more subtype-specific markers. Thus, the results of this study describe the derivation of RGC subtypes from hPSCs and will support the future exploration of phenotypic and functional diversity within human RGCs. : In this article, Langer and colleagues present extensive characterization of RGC subtypes derived from human pluripotent stem cells, with multiple subtypes identified by subtype-specific molecular markers. Their results present a more detailed analysis of RGC diversity in human cells and yield the use of different markers to identify RGC subtypes. Keywords: iPSC, retina, retinal ganglion cell, RGC subtype, stem cell, ipRGC, alpha RGC, direction selective RGC, RNA-seq

Hurdles to clinical translation of human induced pluripotent stem cells

OpenAIRE

Neofytou, Evgenios; O’Brien, Connor Galen; Couture, Larry A.; Wu, Joseph C.

2015-01-01

Human pluripotent stem cells are known to have the capacity to renew indefinitely, being intrinsically able to differentiate into many different cell types. These characteristics have generated tremendous enthusiasm about the potential applications of these cells in regenerative medicine. However, major challenges remain with the development and testing of novel experimental stem cell therapeutics in the field. In this Review, we focus on the nature of the preclinical challenges and discuss p...

Human serum-derived protein removes the need for coating in defined human pluripotent stem cell culture

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Pijuan-Galitó, Sara; Tamm, Christoffer; Schuster, Jens; Sobol, Maria; Forsberg, Lars; Merry, Catherine L. R.; Annerén, Cecilia

2016-01-01

Reliable, scalable and time-efficient culture methods are required to fully realize the clinical and industrial applications of human pluripotent stem (hPS) cells. Here we present a completely defined, xeno-free medium that supports long-term propagation of hPS cells on uncoated tissue culture plastic. The medium consists of the Essential 8 (E8) formulation supplemented with inter-α-inhibitor (IαI), a human serum-derived protein, recently demonstrated to activate key pluripotency pathways in mouse PS cells. IαI efficiently induces attachment and long-term growth of both embryonic and induced hPS cell lines when added as a soluble protein to the medium at seeding. IαI supplementation efficiently supports adaptation of feeder-dependent hPS cells to xeno-free conditions, clonal growth as well as single-cell survival in the absence of Rho-associated kinase inhibitor (ROCKi). This time-efficient and simplified culture method paves the way for large-scale, high-throughput hPS cell culture, and will be valuable for both basic research and commercial applications. PMID:27405751

Engineering of Pulsatile Conduits from Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Derived Cardiomyocytes

Science.gov (United States)

2017-06-01

Stem cells . Cardiovascular . Regenerative medicine . Induced pluripotent stem cells . Embryonic stem ...lineage-specific marker ex- pression. The advent of these induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) generated a large interest in the stem cell and regen ... pluripotent stem cells : macro- andmicrostructures for disease modeling, drug screening , and

Translation of Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells: From Clinical Trial in a Dish to Precision Medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Sayed, Nazish; Liu, Chun; Wu, Joseph C

2016-05-10

The prospect of changing the plasticity of terminally differentiated cells toward pluripotency has completely altered the outlook for biomedical research. Human-induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) provide a new source of therapeutic cells free from the ethical issues or immune barriers of human embryonic stem cells. iPSCs also confer considerable advantages over conventional methods of studying human diseases. Since its advent, iPSC technology has expanded with 3 major applications: disease modeling, regenerative therapy, and drug discovery. Here we discuss, in a comprehensive manner, the recent advances in iPSC technology in relation to basic, clinical, and population health. Copyright © 2016 American College of Cardiology Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A review of human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes for high-throughput drug discovery, cardiotoxicity screening, and publication standards.

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Mordwinkin, Nicholas M; Burridge, Paul W; Wu, Joseph C

2013-02-01

Drug attrition rates have increased in past years, resulting in growing costs for the pharmaceutical industry and consumers. The reasons for this include the lack of in vitro models that correlate with clinical results and poor preclinical toxicity screening assays. The in vitro production of human cardiac progenitor cells and cardiomyocytes from human pluripotent stem cells provides an amenable source of cells for applications in drug discovery, disease modeling, regenerative medicine, and cardiotoxicity screening. In addition, the ability to derive human-induced pluripotent stem cells from somatic tissues, combined with current high-throughput screening and pharmacogenomics, may help realize the use of these cells to fulfill the potential of personalized medicine. In this review, we discuss the use of pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes for drug discovery and cardiotoxicity screening, as well as current hurdles that must be overcome for wider clinical applications of this promising approach.

Monitoring Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes with Genetically Encoded Calcium and Voltage Fluorescent Reporters

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Shinnawi, Rami; Huber, Irit; Maizels, Leonid; Shaheen, Naim; Gepstein, Amira; Arbel, Gil; Tijsen, Anke J.; Gepstein, Lior

2015-01-01

The advent of the human-induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) technology has transformed biomedical research, providing new tools for human disease modeling, drug development, and regenerative medicine. To fulfill its unique potential in the cardiovascular field, efficient methods should be

Human amniotic epithelial cell feeder layers maintain human iPS cell pluripotency via inhibited endogenous microRNA-145 and increased Sox2 expression

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Te; Cheng, Weiwei; Huang, Yongyi; Huang, Qin; Jiang, Lizhen; Guo, Lihe

2012-01-01

Currently, human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells were generated from patient or disease-specific sources and share the same key properties as embryonic stem cells. This makes them attractive for personalized medicine, drug screens or cellular therapy. Long-term cultivation and maintenance of normal iPS cells in an undifferentiated self-renewing state are a major challenge. Our previous studies have shown that human amniotic epithelial cells (HuAECs) could provide a good source of feeder cells for mouse and human embryonic stem cells, or spermatogonial stem cells, but the mechanism for this is unknown. Here, we examined the effect of endogenous microRNA-145 regulation on Sox2 expression in human iPS cells by HuAECs feeder cells regulation, and in turn on human iPS cells pluripotency. We found that human IPS cells transfected with a microRNA-145 mutant expressed Sox2 at high levels, allowing iPS to maintain a high level of AP activity in long-term culture and form teratomas in SCID mice. Expression of stem cell markers was increased in iPS transfected with the microRNA-145 mutant, compared with iPS was transfected with microRNA-145. Besides, the expression of Drosha proteins of the microRNA-processor complex, required for the generation of precursor pre-miRNA, was significantly increased in human iPS cells cultured on MEF but not on HuAECs. Taken together, these results suggest that endogenous Sox2 expression may be regulated by microRNA-145 in human iPS cells with HuAECs feeder cells, and Sox2 is a crucial component required for maintenance of them in an undifferentiated, proliferative state capable of self-renewal. Highlights: ► microRNA-145 inhibits Sox2 expression in human iPS cells. ► microRNA-145 suppresses the self-renewal and pluripotency of human iPS cells. ► HuAECs regulate expression of microRNA-145 and Sox2 in human iPS cells. ► HuAECs feeder layers maintain human iPS cells pluripotency. ► HuAECs negatively regulates the synthesis of

Human amniotic epithelial cell feeder layers maintain human iPS cell pluripotency via inhibited endogenous microRNA-145 and increased Sox2 expression

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu, Te, E-mail: liute79@yahoo.com [School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Donghua University, Shanghai 201620 (China); Shanghai Geriatric Institute of Chinese Medicine, Shanghai 200031 (China); Cheng, Weiwei [International Peace Maternity and Child Health Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai 200030 (China); Huang, Yongyi [Laboratoire PROTEE, Batiment R, Universite du Sud Toulon-Var, 83957 LA GARDE Cedex (France); Huang, Qin; Jiang, Lizhen [Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031 (China); Guo, Lihe, E-mail: liute79@yahoo.com [Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031 (China)

2012-02-15

Currently, human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells were generated from patient or disease-specific sources and share the same key properties as embryonic stem cells. This makes them attractive for personalized medicine, drug screens or cellular therapy. Long-term cultivation and maintenance of normal iPS cells in an undifferentiated self-renewing state are a major challenge. Our previous studies have shown that human amniotic epithelial cells (HuAECs) could provide a good source of feeder cells for mouse and human embryonic stem cells, or spermatogonial stem cells, but the mechanism for this is unknown. Here, we examined the effect of endogenous microRNA-145 regulation on Sox2 expression in human iPS cells by HuAECs feeder cells regulation, and in turn on human iPS cells pluripotency. We found that human IPS cells transfected with a microRNA-145 mutant expressed Sox2 at high levels, allowing iPS to maintain a high level of AP activity in long-term culture and form teratomas in SCID mice. Expression of stem cell markers was increased in iPS transfected with the microRNA-145 mutant, compared with iPS was transfected with microRNA-145. Besides, the expression of Drosha proteins of the microRNA-processor complex, required for the generation of precursor pre-miRNA, was significantly increased in human iPS cells cultured on MEF but not on HuAECs. Taken together, these results suggest that endogenous Sox2 expression may be regulated by microRNA-145 in human iPS cells with HuAECs feeder cells, and Sox2 is a crucial component required for maintenance of them in an undifferentiated, proliferative state capable of self-renewal. Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer microRNA-145 inhibits Sox2 expression in human iPS cells. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer microRNA-145 suppresses the self-renewal and pluripotency of human iPS cells. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer HuAECs regulate expression of microRNA-145 and Sox2 in human iPS cells. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer HuAECs feeder

Long-Term Culture of Self-renewing Pancreatic Progenitors Derived from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Jamie Trott

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Pluripotent stem cells have been proposed as an unlimited source of pancreatic β cells for studying and treating diabetes. However, the long, multi-step differentiation protocols used to generate functional β cells inevitably exhibit considerable variability, particularly when applied to pluripotent cells from diverse genetic backgrounds. We have developed culture conditions that support long-term self-renewal of human multipotent pancreatic progenitors, which are developmentally more proximal to the specialized cells of the adult pancreas. These cultured pancreatic progenitor (cPP cells express key pancreatic transcription factors, including PDX1 and SOX9, and exhibit transcriptomes closely related to their in vivo counterparts. Upon exposure to differentiation cues, cPP cells give rise to pancreatic endocrine, acinar, and ductal lineages, indicating multilineage potency. Furthermore, cPP cells generate insulin+ β-like cells in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that they offer a convenient alternative to pluripotent cells as a source of adult cell types for modeling pancreatic development and diabetes.

Engineering of a Potent Recombinant Lectin-Toxin Fusion Protein to Eliminate Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Tateno, Hiroaki; Saito, Sayoko

2017-07-10

The use of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) such as human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) in regenerative medicine is hindered by their tumorigenic potential. Previously, we developed a recombinant lectin-toxin fusion protein of the hPSC-specific lectin rBC2LCN, which has a 23 kDa catalytic domain (domain III) of Pseudomonas aeruginosa exotoxin A (rBC2LCN-PE23). This fusion protein could selectively eliminate hPSCs following its addition to the cell culture medium. Here we conjugated rBC2LCN lectin with a 38 kDa domain of exotoxin A containing domains Ib and II in addition to domain III (PE38). The developed rBC2LCN-PE38 fusion protein could eliminate 50% of 201B7 hPSCs at a concentration of 0.003 μg/mL (24 h incubation), representing an approximately 556-fold higher activity than rBC2LCN-PE23. Little or no effect on human fibroblasts, human mesenchymal stem cells, and hiPSC-derived hepatocytes was observed at concentrations lower than 1 μg/mL. Finally, we demonstrate that rBC2LCN-PE38 selectively eliminates hiPSCs from a mixed culture of hiPSCs and hiPSC-derived hepatocytes. Since rBC2LCN-PE38 can be prepared from soluble fractions of E. coli culture at a yield of 9 mg/L, rBC2LCN-PE38 represents a practical reagent to remove human pluripotent stem cells residing in cultured cells destined for transplantation.

Efficient generation of lens progenitor cells from cataract patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaodi Qiu

Full Text Available The development of a technique to induce the transformation of somatic cells to a pluripotent state via the ectopic expression of defined transcription factors was a transformational event in the field of regenerative medicine. The development of this technique also impacted ophthalmology, as patient-specific induced pluripotent stemcells (iPSCs may be useful resources for some ophthalmological diseases. The lens is a key refractive element in the eye that focuses images of the visual world onto the retina. To establish a new model for drug screening to treat lens diseases and investigating lens aging and development, we examined whether human lens epithelial cells (HLECs could be induced into iPSCs and if lens-specific differentiation of these cells could be achieved under defined chemical conditions. We first efficiently reprogrammed HLECs from age-related cataract patients to iPSCs with OCT-4, SOX-2, and KLF-4. The resulting HLEC-derived iPS (HLE-iPS colonies were indistinguishable from human ES cells with respect to morphology, gene expression, pluripotent marker expression and their ability to generate all embryonic germ-cell layers. Next, we performed a 3-step induction procedure: HLE-iPS cells were differentiated into large numbers of lens progenitor-like cells with defined factors (Noggin, BMP and FGF2, and we determined that these cells expressed lens-specific markers (PAX6, SOX2, SIX3, CRYAB, CRYAA, BFSP1, and MIP. In addition, HLE-iPS-derived lens cells exhibited reduced expression of epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT markers compared with human embryonic stem cells (hESCs and fibroblast-derived iPSCs. Our study describes a highly efficient procedure for generating lens progenitor cells from cataract patient HLEC-derived iPSCs. These patient-derived pluripotent cells provide a valuable model for studying the developmental and molecular biological mechanisms that underlie cell determination in lens development and cataract

Electrophysiological analysis of human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs) using multi-electrode arrays (MEAs)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sala, Luca; Ward-van Oostwaard, Dorien; Tertoolen, Leon G.J.; Mummery, Christine L.; Bellin, Milena

2017-01-01

Cardiomyocytes can now be derived with high efficiency from both human embryonic and human induced-Pluripotent Stem Cells (hPSC). hPSC-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs) are increasingly recognized as having great value for modeling cardiovascular diseases in humans, especially arrhythmia syndromes.

Generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells from urinary cells of a healthy donor using a non-integration system

OpenAIRE

Uhm, Kyung-Ok; Jo, Eun Hee; Go, Gue Youn; Kim, So-Jung; Choi, Hye Young; Im, Young Sam; Ha, Hye-Yeong; Jung, Ji-Won; Koo, Soo Kyung

2017-01-01

Urinary cells can be an ideal source for generating hiPSCs and progenitors, as they are easily accessible, non-invasive, and universally available. We generated human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) from the urinary cells of a healthy donor using a Sendai virus-based gene delivery method. The generated hiPSC line, KSCBi001-A, has a normal karyotype (46,XY). The pluripotency and capacity of multilineage differentiation were characterized by comparison with those of a human embryonic st...

Mapping the Pairwise Choices Leading from Pluripotency to Human Bone, Heart, and Other Mesoderm Cell Types.

Science.gov (United States)

Loh, Kyle M; Chen, Angela; Koh, Pang Wei; Deng, Tianda Z; Sinha, Rahul; Tsai, Jonathan M; Barkal, Amira A; Shen, Kimberle Y; Jain, Rajan; Morganti, Rachel M; Shyh-Chang, Ng; Fernhoff, Nathaniel B; George, Benson M; Wernig, Gerlinde; Salomon, Rachel E A; Chen, Zhenghao; Vogel, Hannes; Epstein, Jonathan A; Kundaje, Anshul; Talbot, William S; Beachy, Philip A; Ang, Lay Teng; Weissman, Irving L

2016-07-14

Stem-cell differentiation to desired lineages requires navigating alternating developmental paths that often lead to unwanted cell types. Hence, comprehensive developmental roadmaps are crucial to channel stem-cell differentiation toward desired fates. To this end, here, we map bifurcating lineage choices leading from pluripotency to 12 human mesodermal lineages, including bone, muscle, and heart. We defined the extrinsic signals controlling each binary lineage decision, enabling us to logically block differentiation toward unwanted fates and rapidly steer pluripotent stem cells toward 80%-99% pure human mesodermal lineages at most branchpoints. This strategy enabled the generation of human bone and heart progenitors that could engraft in respective in vivo models. Mapping stepwise chromatin and single-cell gene expression changes in mesoderm development uncovered somite segmentation, a previously unobservable human embryonic event transiently marked by HOPX expression. Collectively, this roadmap enables navigation of mesodermal development to produce transplantable human tissue progenitors and uncover developmental processes. VIDEO ABSTRACT. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Establishment of feeder-free culture system for human induced pluripotent stem cell on DAS nanocrystalline graphene

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Lee, Hyunah; Nam, Donggyu; Choi, Jae-Kyung; Araúzo-Bravo, Marcos J.; Kwon, Soon-Yong; Zaehres, Holm; Lee, Taehee; Park, Chan Young; Kang, Hyun-Wook; Schöler, Hans R.; Kim, Jeong Beom

2016-02-01

The maintenance of undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC) under xeno-free condition requires the use of human feeder cells or extracellular matrix (ECM) coating. However, human-derived sources may cause human pathogen contamination by viral or non-viral agents to the patients. Here we demonstrate feeder-free and xeno-free culture system for hPSC expansion using diffusion assisted synthesis-grown nanocrystalline graphene (DAS-NG), a synthetic non-biological nanomaterial which completely rule out the concern of human pathogen contamination. DAS-NG exhibited advanced biocompatibilities including surface nanoroughness, oxygen containing functional groups and hydrophilicity. hPSC cultured on DAS-NG could maintain pluripotency in vitro and in vivo, and especially cell adhesion-related gene expression profile was comparable to those of cultured on feeders, while hPSC cultured without DAS-NG differentiated spontaneously with high expression of somatic cell-enriched adhesion genes. This feeder-free and xeno-free culture method using DAS-NG will facilitate the generation of clinical-grade hPSC.

Human Pluripotent Stem Cells to Engineer Blood Vessels.

Science.gov (United States)

Chan, Xin Yi; Elliott, Morgan B; Macklin, Bria; Gerecht, Sharon

2018-01-01

Development of pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) is a remarkable scientific advancement that allows scientists to harness the power of regenerative medicine for potential treatment of disease using unaffected cells. PSCs provide a unique opportunity to study and combat cardiovascular diseases, which continue to claim the lives of thousands each day. Here, we discuss the differentiation of PSCs into vascular cells, investigation of the functional capabilities of the derived cells, and their utilization to engineer microvascular beds or vascular grafts for clinical application. Graphical Abstract Human iPSCs generated from patients are differentiated toward ECs and perivascular cells for use in disease modeling, microvascular bed development, or vascular graft fabrication.

Rapid, Directed Differentiation of Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells from Human Embryonic or Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

OpenAIRE

Foltz, LP; Clegg, DO

2017-01-01

We describe a robust method to direct the differentiation of pluripotent stem cells into retinal pigment epithelial cells (RPE). The purpose of providing a detailed and thorough protocol is to clearly demonstrate each step and to make this readily available to researchers in the field. This protocol results in a homogenous layer of RPE with minimal or no manual dissection needed. The method presented here has been shown to be effective for induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) and human embry...

Myostatin acts as an autocrine/paracrine negative regulator in myoblast differentiation from human induced pluripotent stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Fei; Kishida, Tsunao; Ejima, Akika; Gojo, Satoshi; Mazda, Osam

2013-02-08

Myostatin, also known as growth differentiation factor (GDF-8), regulates proliferation of muscle satellite cells, and suppresses differentiation of myoblasts into myotubes via down-regulation of key myogenic differentiation factors including MyoD. Recent advances in stem cell biology have enabled generation of myoblasts from pluripotent stem cells, but it remains to be clarified whether myostatin is also involved in regulation of artificial differentiation of myoblasts from pluripotent stem cells. Here we show that the human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell-derived cells that were induced to differentiate into myoblasts expressed myostatin and its receptor during the differentiation. An addition of recombinant human myostatin (rhMyostatin) suppressed induction of MyoD and Myo5a, resulting in significant suppression of myoblast differentiation. The rhMyostatin treatment also inhibited proliferation of the cells at a later phase of differentiation. RNAi-mediated silencing of myostatin promoted differentiation of human iPS-derived embryoid body (EB) cells into myoblasts. These results strongly suggest that myostatin plays an important role in regulation of myoblast differentiation from iPS cells of human origin. The present findings also have significant implications for potential regenerative medicine for muscular diseases. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cytokine-free directed differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells efficiently produces hemogenic endothelium with lymphoid potential.

Science.gov (United States)

Galat, Yekaterina; Dambaeva, Svetlana; Elcheva, Irina; Khanolkar, Aaruni; Beaman, Kenneth; Iannaccone, Philip M; Galat, Vasiliy

2017-03-17

The robust generation of human hematopoietic progenitor cells from induced or embryonic pluripotent stem cells would be beneficial for multiple areas of research, including mechanistic studies of hematopoiesis, the development of cellular therapies for autoimmune diseases, induced transplant tolerance, anticancer immunotherapies, disease modeling, and drug/toxicity screening. Over the past years, significant progress has been made in identifying effective protocols for hematopoietic differentiation from pluripotent stem cells and understanding stages of mesodermal, endothelial, and hematopoietic specification. Thus, it has been shown that variations in cytokine and inhibitory molecule treatments in the first few days of hematopoietic differentiation define primitive versus definitive potential of produced hematopoietic progenitor cells. The majority of current feeder-free, defined systems for hematopoietic induction from pluripotent stem cells include prolonged incubations with various cytokines that make the differentiation process complex and time consuming. We established that the application of Wnt agonist CHIR99021 efficiently promotes differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells in the absence of any hematopoietic cytokines to the stage of hemogenic endothelium capable of definitive hematopoiesis. The hemogenic endothelium differentiation was accomplished in an adherent, serum-free culture system by applying CHIR99021. Hemogenic endothelium progenitor cells were isolated on day 5 of differentiation and evaluated for their endothelial, myeloid, and lymphoid potential. Monolayer induction based on GSK3 inhibition, described here, yielded a large number of CD31 + CD34 + hemogenic endothelium cells. When isolated and propagated in adherent conditions, these progenitors gave rise to mature endothelium. When further cocultured with OP9 mouse stromal cells, these progenitors gave rise to various cells of myeloid lineages as well as natural killer lymphoid, T

Generation of Spinal Motor Neurons from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Santos, David P; Kiskinis, Evangelos

2017-01-01

Human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are characterized by their unique ability to self-renew indefinitely, as well as to differentiate into any cell type of the human body. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) share these salient characteristics with ESCs and can easily be generated from any given individual by reprogramming somatic cell types such as fibroblasts or blood cells. The spinal motor neuron (MN) is a specialized neuronal subtype that synapses with muscle to control movement. Here, we present a method to generate functional, postmitotic, spinal motor neurons through the directed differentiation of ESCs and iPSCs by the use of small molecules. These cells can be utilized to study the development and function of human motor neurons in healthy and disease states.

nduced pluripotent stem cells and cell therapy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Banu İskender

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Human embryonic stem cells are derived from the inner cell mass of a blastocyst-stage embryo. They hold a huge promise for cell therapy with their self-renewing ability and pluripotency, which is known as the potential to differentiate into all cell types originating from three embryonic germ layers. However, their unique pluripotent feature could not be utilised for therapeutic purposes due to the ethical and legal problems during derivation. Recently, it was shown that the cells from adult tissues could be reverted into embryonic state, thereby restoring their pluripotent feature. This has strenghtened the possiblity of directed differentition of the reprogrammed somatic cells into the desired cell types in vitro and their use in regenerative medicine. Although these cells were termed as induced pluripotent cells, the mechanism of pluripotency has yet to be understood. Still, induced pluripotent stem cell technology is considered to be significant by proposing novel approaches in disease modelling, drug screening and cell therapy. Besides their self-renewing ability and their potential to differentiate into all cell types in a human body, they arouse a great interest in scientific world by being far from the ethical concerns regarding their embryonic counterparts and their unique feature of being patient-specific in prospective cell therapies. In this review, induced pluripotent stem cell technology and its role in cell-based therapies from past to present will be discussed. J Clin Exp Invest 2013; 4 (4: 550-561

New frontiers in human cell biology and medicine: can pluripotent stem cells deliver?

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Goldstein, Lawrence S B

2012-11-12

Human pluripotent stem cells provide enormous opportunities to treat disease using cell therapy. But human stem cells can also drive biomedical and cell biological discoveries in a human model system, which can be directly linked to understanding disease or developing new therapies. Finally, rigorous scientific studies of these cells can and should inform the many science and medical policy issues that confront the translation of these technologies to medicine. In this paper, I discuss these issues using amyotrophic lateral sclerosis as an example.

Distinct epigenomic landscapes of pluripotent and lineage-committed human cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Hawkins, R David; Hon, Gary C; Lee, Leonard K; Ngo, Queminh; Lister, Ryan; Pelizzola, Mattia; Edsall, Lee E; Kuan, Samantha; Luu, Ying; Klugman, Sarit; Antosiewicz-Bourget, Jessica; Ye, Zhen; Espinoza, Celso; Agarwahl, Saurabh; Shen, Li; Ruotti, Victor; Wang, Wei; Stewart, Ron; Thomson, James A; Ecker, Joseph R; Ren, Bing

2010-05-07

Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) share an identical genome with lineage-committed cells, yet possess the remarkable properties of self-renewal and pluripotency. The diverse cellular properties in different cells have been attributed to their distinct epigenomes, but how much epigenomes differ remains unclear. Here, we report that epigenomic landscapes in hESCs and lineage-committed cells are drastically different. By comparing the chromatin-modification profiles and DNA methylomes in hESCs and primary fibroblasts, we find that nearly one-third of the genome differs in chromatin structure. Most changes arise from dramatic redistributions of repressive H3K9me3 and H3K27me3 marks, which form blocks that significantly expand in fibroblasts. A large number of potential regulatory sequences also exhibit a high degree of dynamics in chromatin modifications and DNA methylation. Additionally, we observe novel, context-dependent relationships between DNA methylation and chromatin modifications. Our results provide new insights into epigenetic mechanisms underlying properties of pluripotency and cell fate commitment.

Colony size distributions according to in vitro aging in human skin fibroblasts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Jun Sang; Kim, Jae Sung; Cho, Moon June; Park, Jeong Kyu; Paik, Tae Hyun

1999-01-01

To investigate the percentage of colonies with 16 or more cells distribution of human skin fibroblast according to in vitro aging, and to evaluate the relationship between percentage of colonies with 16 or more cells and in vivo donor age in human skin fibroblast culture. C1, C2, C3a, and C3b human skin fibroblast samples from three breast cancer patients were used as subjects. The C1, C2, and C3a donor were 44, 54, and 55 years old, respectively. C3a and C3b cells were isolated from the same person. Single cell suspension of skin fibroblasts was prepared with primary explant technique. One hundred cells are plated into 100ml tissue culture flask and cultured for two weeks. The colony size was defined as colonies with 16 or more cells. The cultured cell was stained with crystal violet, and number of cells in each colony was determined with stereo microscope at x 10 magnification. Passage number of C1, C2, C3a and C3b skin fibroblast were 12th, 17th, and 14th, respectively. Percentage of colonies with 16 or more cells of skin fibroblast samples decreased with increasing in vitro passage number. In contrast, cumulative population doublings of skin fibroblast sample increased with increasing in vitro passage number. Percentage of colonies with 16 or more cells also decreased with increasing population doublings in human skin fibroblast culture. There was strong correlation with percentage of colonised with 16 or more cells and population doublings in C3a skin fibroblast sample. At the same point of population doublings, the percentage of colonies with 16 or more cells of the young C1 donor was higher level than the old C3a donor. The population doublings increased with increasing in vitro passage number but percentage of colonies with 16 or more cells decreased. The results of this study imply that percentage of colonies with 16 or more cells is useful as a indicator of in vitro human skin fibroblast aging and may estimate the in vivo donor age

High-efficiency generation of induced pluripotent mesenchymal stem cells from human dermal fibroblasts using recombinant proteins.

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Chen, Fanfan; Zhang, Guoqiang; Yu, Ling; Feng, Yanye; Li, Xianghui; Zhang, Zhijun; Wang, Yongting; Sun, Dapeng; Pradhan, Sriharsa

2016-07-30

Induced pluripotent mesenchymal stem cells (iPMSCs) are novel candidates for drug screening, regenerative medicine, and cell therapy. However, introduction of transcription factor encoding genes for induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) generation which could be used to generate mesenchymal stem cells is accompanied by the risk of insertional mutations in the target cell genome. We demonstrate a novel method using an inactivated viral particle to package and deliver four purified recombinant Yamanaka transcription factors (Sox2, Oct4, Klf4, and c-Myc) resulting in reprogramming of human primary fibroblasts. Whole genome bisulfite sequencing was used to analyze genome-wide CpG methylation of human iPMSCs. Western blot, quantitative PCR, immunofluorescence, and in-vitro differentiation were used to assess the pluripotency of iPMSCs. The resulting reprogrammed fibroblasts show high-level expression of stem cell markers. The human fibroblast-derived iPMSC genome showed gains in DNA methylation in low to medium methylated regions and concurrent loss of methylation in previously hypermethylated regions. Most of the differentially methylated regions are close to transcription start sites and many of these genes are pluripotent pathway associated. We found that DNA methylation of these genes is regulated by the four iPSC transcription factors, which functions as an epigenetic switch during somatic reprogramming as reported previously. These iPMSCs successfully differentiate into three embryonic germ layer cells, both in vitro and in vivo. Following multipotency induction in our study, the delivered transcription factors were degraded, leading to an improved efficiency of subsequent programmed differentiation. Recombinant transcription factor based reprogramming and derivatization of iPMSC offers a novel high-efficiency approach for regenerative medicine from patient-derived cells.

A novel in vitro method for detecting undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells as impurities in cell therapy products using a highly efficient culture system.

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Keiko Tano

Full Text Available Innovative applications of cell therapy products (CTPs derived from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs in regenerative medicine are currently being developed. The presence of residual undifferentiated hPSCs in CTPs is a quality concern associated with tumorigencity. However, no simple in vitro method for direct detection of undifferentiated hPSCs that contaminate CTPs has been developed. Here, we show a novel approach for direct and sensitive detection of a trace amount of undifferentiated human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs using a highly efficient amplification method in combination with laminin-521 and Essential 8 medium. Essential 8 medium better facilitated the growth of hiPSCs dissociated into single cells on laminin-521 than in mTeSR1 medium. hiPSCs cultured on laminin-521 in Essential 8 medium were maintained in an undifferentiated state and they maintained the ability to differentiate into various cell types. Essential 8 medium allowed robust hiPSC proliferation plated on laminin-521 at low cell density, whereas mTeSR1 did not enhance the cell growth. The highly efficient culture system using laminin-521 and Essential 8 medium detected hiPSCs spiked into primary human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs or human neurons at the ratio of 0.001%-0.01% as formed colonies. Moreover, this assay method was demonstrated to detect residual undifferentiated hiPSCs in cell preparations during the process of hMSC differentiation from hiPSCs. These results indicate that our highly efficient amplification system using a combination of laminin-521 and Essential 8 medium is able to detect a trace amount of undifferentiated hPSCs contained as impurities in CTPs and would contribute to quality assessment of hPSC-derived CTPs during the manufacturing process.

Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived beating cardiac tissues on paper.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Li; Xu, Cong; Zhu, Yujuan; Yu, Yue; Sun, Ning; Zhang, Xiaoqing; Feng, Ke; Qin, Jianhua

2015-11-21

There is a growing interest in using paper as a biomaterial scaffold for cell-based applications. In this study, we made the first attempt to fabricate a paper-based array for the culture, proliferation, and direct differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) into functional beating cardiac tissues and create "a beating heart on paper." This array was simply constructed by binding a cured multi-well polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) mold with common, commercially available paper substrates. Three types of paper material (print paper, chromatography paper and nitrocellulose membrane) were tested for adhesion, proliferation and differentiation of human-derived iPSCs. We found that hiPSCs grew well on these paper substrates, presenting a three-dimensional (3D)-like morphology with a pluripotent property. The direct differentiation of human iPSCs into functional cardiac tissues on paper was also achieved using our modified differentiation approach. The cardiac tissue retained its functional activities on the coated print paper and chromatography paper with a beating frequency of 40-70 beats per min for up to three months. Interestingly, human iPSCs could be differentiated into retinal pigment epithelium on nitrocellulose membrane under the conditions of cardiac-specific induction, indicating the potential roles of material properties and mechanical cues that are involved in regulating stem cell differentiation. Taken together, these results suggest that different grades of paper could offer great opportunities as bioactive, low-cost, and 3D in vitro platforms for stem cell-based high-throughput drug testing at the tissue/organ level and for tissue engineering applications.

Extract of mouse embryonic stem cells induces the expression of pluripotency genes in human adipose tissue-derived stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Salehi, Paria Motamen; Foroutan, Tahereh; Javeri, Arash; Taha, Masoumeh Fakhr

2017-11-01

In some previous studies, the extract of embryonic carcinoma cells (ECCs) and embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have been used to reprogram somatic cells to more dedifferentiated state. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of mouse ESCs extract on the expression of some pluripotency markers in human adipose tissue-derived stem cells (ADSCs). Human ADSCs were isolated from subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue and characterized by flow cytometric analysis for the expression of some mesenchymal stem cell markers and adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation. Frequent freeze-thaw technique was used to prepare cytoplasmic extract of ESCs. Plasma membranes of the ADSCs were reversibly permeabilized by streptolysin-O (SLO). Then the permeabilized ADSCs were incubated with the ESC extract and cultured in resealing medium. After reprogramming, the expression of some pluripotency genes was evaluated by RT-PCR and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) analyses. Third-passaged ADSCs showed a fibroblast-like morphology and expressed mesenchymal stem cell markers. They also showed adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation potential. QPCR analysis revealed a significant upregulation in the expression of some pluripotency genes including OCT4 , SOX2 , NANOG , REX1 and ESG1 in the reprogrammed ADSCs compared to the control group. These findings showed that mouse ESC extract can be used to induce reprogramming of human ADSCs. In fact, this method is applicable for reprogramming of human adult stem cells to a more pluripotent sate and may have a potential in regenerative medicine.

Generation of inner ear organoids containing functional hair cells from human pluripotent stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Koehler, Karl R; Nie, Jing; Longworth-Mills, Emma; Liu, Xiao-Ping; Lee, Jiyoon; Holt, Jeffrey R; Hashino, Eri

2017-06-01

The derivation of human inner ear tissue from pluripotent stem cells would enable in vitro screening of drug candidates for the treatment of hearing and balance dysfunction and may provide a source of cells for cell-based therapies of the inner ear. Here we report a method for differentiating human pluripotent stem cells to inner ear organoids that harbor functional hair cells. Using a three-dimensional culture system, we modulate TGF, BMP, FGF, and WNT signaling to generate multiple otic-vesicle-like structures from a single stem-cell aggregate. Over 2 months, the vesicles develop into inner ear organoids with sensory epithelia that are innervated by sensory neurons. Additionally, using CRISPR-Cas9, we generate an ATOH1-2A-eGFP cell line to detect hair cell induction and demonstrate that derived hair cells exhibit electrophysiological properties similar to those of native sensory hair cells. Our culture system should facilitate the study of human inner ear development and research on therapies for diseases of the inner ear.

Xeno-free culture of human pluripotent stem cells on oligopeptide-grafted hydrogels with various molecular designs

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yen-Ming; Chen, Li-Hua; Li, Meng-Pei; Li, Hsing-Fen; Higuchi, Akon; Kumar, S. Suresh; Ling, Qing-Dong; Alarfaj, Abdullah A.; Munusamy, Murugan A.; Chang, Yung; Benelli, Giovanni; Murugan, Kadarkarai; Umezawa, Akihiro

2017-01-01

Establishing cultures of human embryonic (ES) and induced pluripotent (iPS) stem cells in xeno-free conditions is essential for producing clinical-grade cells. Development of cell culture biomaterials for human ES and iPS cells is critical for this purpose. We designed several structures of oligopeptide-grafted poly (vinyl alcohol-co-itaconic acid) hydrogels with optimal elasticity, and prepared them in formations of single chain, single chain with joint segment, dual chain with joint segment, and branched-type chain. Oligopeptide sequences were selected from integrin- and glycosaminoglycan-binding domains of the extracellular matrix. The hydrogels grafted with vitronectin-derived oligopeptides having a joint segment or a dual chain, which has a storage modulus of 25 kPa, supported the long-term culture of human ES and iPS cells for over 10 passages. The dual chain and/or joint segment with cell adhesion molecules on the hydrogels facilitated the proliferation and pluripotency of human ES and iPS cells. PMID:28332572

Totipotency, Pluripotency and Nuclear Reprogramming

Science.gov (United States)

Mitalipov, Shoukhrat; Wolf, Don

Mammalian development commences with the totipotent zygote which is capable of developing into all the specialized cells that make up the adult animal. As development unfolds, cells of the early embryo proliferate and differentiate into the first two lineages, the pluripotent inner cell mass and the trophectoderm. Pluripotent cells can be isolated, adapted and propagated indefinitely in vitro in an undifferentiated state as embryonic stem cells (ESCs). ESCs retain their ability to differentiate into cells representing the three major germ layers: endoderm, mesoderm or ectoderm or any of the 200+ cell types present in the adult body. Since many human diseases result from defects in a single cell type, pluripotent human ESCs represent an unlimited source of any cell or tissue type for replacement therapy thus providing a possible cure for many devastating conditions. Pluripotent cells resembling ESCs can also be derived experimentally by the nuclear reprogramming of somatic cells. Reprogrammed somatic cells may have an even more important role in cell replacement therapies since the patient's own somatic cells can be used for reprogramming thereby eliminating immune based rejection of transplanted cells. In this review, we summarize two major approaches to reprogramming: (1) somatic cell nuclear transfer and (2) direct reprogramming using genetic manipulations.

Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived vascular smooth muscle cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ayoubi, Sohrab; Sheikh, Søren P; Eskildsen, Tilde V

2017-01-01

. To this end, human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) have generated great enthusiasm, and have been a driving force for development of novel strategies in drug discovery and regenerative cell-therapy for the last decade. Hence, investigating the mechanisms underlying the differentiation of hi......PSCs into specialized cell types such as cardiomyocytes, endothelial cells, and vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) may lead to a better understanding of developmental cardiovascular processes and potentiate progress of safe autologous regenerative therapies in pathological conditions. In this review, we summarize...

A DNMT3B alternatively spliced exon and encoded peptide are novel biomarkers of human pluripotent stem cells.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sailesh Gopalakrishna-Pillai

Full Text Available A major obstacle in human stem cell research is the limited number of reagents capable of distinguishing pluripotent stem cells from partially differentiated or incompletely reprogrammed derivatives. Although human embryonic stem cells (hESCs and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs express numerous alternatively spliced transcripts, little attention has been directed at developing splice variant-encoded protein isoforms as reagents for stem cell research. In this study, several genes encoding proteins involved in important signaling pathways were screened to detect alternatively spliced transcripts that exhibited differential expression in pluripotent stem cells (PSCs relative to spontaneously differentiated cells (SDCs. Transcripts containing the alternatively spliced exon 10 of the de novo DNA methyltransferase gene, DNMT3B, were identified that are expressed in PSCs. To demonstrate the utility and superiority of splice variant specific reagents for stem cell research, a peptide encoded by DNMT3B exon 10 was used to generate an antibody, SG1. The SG1 antibody detects a single DNMT3B protein isoform that is expressed only in PSCs but not in SDCs. The SG1 antibody is also demonstrably superior to other antibodies at distinguishing PSCs from SDCs in mixed cultures containing both pluripotent stem cells and partially differentiated derivatives. The tightly controlled down regulation of DNMT3B exon 10 containing transcripts (and exon 10 encoded peptide upon spontaneous differentiation of PSCs suggests that this DNMT3B splice isoform is characteristic of the pluripotent state. Alternatively spliced exons, and the proteins they encode, represent a vast untapped reservoir of novel biomarkers that can be used to develop superior reagents for stem cell research and to gain further insight into mechanisms controlling stem cell pluripotency.

Myostatin acts as an autocrine/paracrine negative regulator in myoblast differentiation from human induced pluripotent stem cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gao, Fei; Kishida, Tsunao; Ejima, Akika [Department of Immunology, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto (Japan); Gojo, Satoshi [Department of Cardiac Support, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto (Japan); Mazda, Osam, E-mail: mazda@koto.kpu-m.ac.jp [Department of Immunology, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto (Japan)

2013-02-08

Highlights: ► iPS-derived cells express myostatin and its receptor upon myoblast differentiation. ► Myostatin inhibits myoblast differentiation by inhibiting MyoD and Myo5a induction. ► Silencing of myostatin promotes differentiation of human iPS cells into myoblasts. -- Abstract: Myostatin, also known as growth differentiation factor (GDF-8), regulates proliferation of muscle satellite cells, and suppresses differentiation of myoblasts into myotubes via down-regulation of key myogenic differentiation factors including MyoD. Recent advances in stem cell biology have enabled generation of myoblasts from pluripotent stem cells, but it remains to be clarified whether myostatin is also involved in regulation of artificial differentiation of myoblasts from pluripotent stem cells. Here we show that the human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell-derived cells that were induced to differentiate into myoblasts expressed myostatin and its receptor during the differentiation. An addition of recombinant human myostatin (rhMyostatin) suppressed induction of MyoD and Myo5a, resulting in significant suppression of myoblast differentiation. The rhMyostatin treatment also inhibited proliferation of the cells at a later phase of differentiation. RNAi-mediated silencing of myostatin promoted differentiation of human iPS-derived embryoid body (EB) cells into myoblasts. These results strongly suggest that myostatin plays an important role in regulation of myoblast differentiation from iPS cells of human origin. The present findings also have significant implications for potential regenerative medicine for muscular diseases.

Myostatin acts as an autocrine/paracrine negative regulator in myoblast differentiation from human induced pluripotent stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gao, Fei; Kishida, Tsunao; Ejima, Akika; Gojo, Satoshi; Mazda, Osam

2013-01-01

Highlights: ► iPS-derived cells express myostatin and its receptor upon myoblast differentiation. ► Myostatin inhibits myoblast differentiation by inhibiting MyoD and Myo5a induction. ► Silencing of myostatin promotes differentiation of human iPS cells into myoblasts. -- Abstract: Myostatin, also known as growth differentiation factor (GDF-8), regulates proliferation of muscle satellite cells, and suppresses differentiation of myoblasts into myotubes via down-regulation of key myogenic differentiation factors including MyoD. Recent advances in stem cell biology have enabled generation of myoblasts from pluripotent stem cells, but it remains to be clarified whether myostatin is also involved in regulation of artificial differentiation of myoblasts from pluripotent stem cells. Here we show that the human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell-derived cells that were induced to differentiate into myoblasts expressed myostatin and its receptor during the differentiation. An addition of recombinant human myostatin (rhMyostatin) suppressed induction of MyoD and Myo5a, resulting in significant suppression of myoblast differentiation. The rhMyostatin treatment also inhibited proliferation of the cells at a later phase of differentiation. RNAi-mediated silencing of myostatin promoted differentiation of human iPS-derived embryoid body (EB) cells into myoblasts. These results strongly suggest that myostatin plays an important role in regulation of myoblast differentiation from iPS cells of human origin. The present findings also have significant implications for potential regenerative medicine for muscular diseases

DNA methylation and transcriptional trajectories during human development and reprogramming of isogenic pluripotent stem cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Roost, Matthias S; Slieker, Roderick C; Bialecka, Monika; van Iperen, Liesbeth; Gomes Fernandes, Maria M; He, Nannan; Suchiman, H Eka D; Szuhai, Karoly; Carlotti, Françoise; de Koning, Eelco J P; Mummery, Christine L; Heijmans, Bastiaan T; Chuva de Sousa Lopes, Susana M

2017-01-01

Determining cell identity and maturation status of differentiated pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) requires knowledge of the transcriptional and epigenetic trajectory of organs during development. Here, we generate a transcriptional and DNA methylation atlas covering 21 organs during human fetal

May I Cut in? Gene Editing Approaches in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Brookhouser, Nicholas; Raman, Sreedevi; Potts, Christopher; Brafman, David A

2017-02-06

In the decade since Yamanaka and colleagues described methods to reprogram somatic cells into a pluripotent state, human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) have demonstrated tremendous promise in numerous disease modeling, drug discovery, and regenerative medicine applications. More recently, the development and refinement of advanced gene transduction and editing technologies have further accelerated the potential of hiPSCs. In this review, we discuss the various gene editing technologies that are being implemented with hiPSCs. Specifically, we describe the emergence of technologies including zinc-finger nuclease (ZFN), transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN), and clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas9 that can be used to edit the genome at precise locations, and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each of these technologies. In addition, we present the current applications of these technologies in elucidating the mechanisms of human development and disease, developing novel and effective therapeutic molecules, and engineering cell-based therapies. Finally, we discuss the emerging technological advances in targeted gene editing methods.

Direct conversion of human pluripotent stem cells into cranial motor neurons using a piggyBac vector

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Riccardo De Santis

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs are widely used for in vitro disease modeling. One of the challenges in the field is represented by the ability of converting human PSCs into specific disease-relevant cell types. The nervous system is composed of a wide variety of neuronal types with selective vulnerability in neurodegenerative diseases. This is particularly relevant for motor neuron diseases, in which different motor neurons populations show a different susceptibility to degeneration. Here we developed a fast and efficient method to convert human induced Pluripotent Stem Cells into cranial motor neurons of the branchiomotor and visceral motor subtype. These populations represent the motor neuron subgroup that is primarily affected by a severe form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis with bulbar onset and worst prognosis. This goal was achieved by stable integration of an inducible vector, based on the piggyBac transposon, allowing controlled activation of Ngn2, Isl1 and Phox2a (NIP. The NIP module effectively produced electrophysiologically active cranial motor neurons. Our method can be easily extended to PSCs carrying disease-associated mutations, thus providing a useful tool to shed light on the cellular and molecular bases of selective motor neuron vulnerability in pathological conditions. Keywords: Spinal motor neuron, Cranial motor neuron, Induced pluripotent stem cells, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Phox2a, piggyBac

Establishment of Human Neural Progenitor Cells from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells with Diverse Tissue Origins

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Hayato Fukusumi

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Human neural progenitor cells (hNPCs have previously been generated from limited numbers of human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC clones. Here, 21 hiPSC clones derived from human dermal fibroblasts, cord blood cells, and peripheral blood mononuclear cells were differentiated using two neural induction methods, an embryoid body (EB formation-based method and an EB formation method using dual SMAD inhibitors (dSMADi. Our results showed that expandable hNPCs could be generated from hiPSC clones with diverse somatic tissue origins. The established hNPCs exhibited a mid/hindbrain-type neural identity and uniform expression of neural progenitor genes.

Surface-engineered substrates for improved human pluripotent stem cell culture under fully defined conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Saha, Krishanu; Mei, Ying; Reisterer, Colin M; Pyzocha, Neena Kenton; Yang, Jing; Muffat, Julien; Davies, Martyn C; Alexander, Morgan R; Langer, Robert; Anderson, Daniel G; Jaenisch, Rudolf

2011-11-15

The current gold standard for the culture of human pluripotent stem cells requires the use of a feeder layer of cells. Here, we develop a spatially defined culture system based on UV/ozone radiation modification of typical cell culture plastics to define a favorable surface environment for human pluripotent stem cell culture. Chemical and geometrical optimization of the surfaces enables control of early cell aggregation from fully dissociated cells, as predicted from a numerical model of cell migration, and results in significant increases in cell growth of undifferentiated cells. These chemically defined xeno-free substrates generate more than three times the number of cells than feeder-containing substrates per surface area. Further, reprogramming and typical gene-targeting protocols can be readily performed on these engineered surfaces. These substrates provide an attractive cell culture platform for the production of clinically relevant factor-free reprogrammed cells from patient tissue samples and facilitate the definition of standardized scale-up friendly methods for disease modeling and cell therapeutic applications.

Human pluripotent stem cells in modeling human disorders: the case of fragile X syndrome.

Science.gov (United States)

Vershkov, Dan; Benvenisty, Nissim

2017-01-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) generated from affected blastocysts or from patient-derived somatic cells are an emerging platform for disease modeling and drug discovery. Fragile X syndrome (FXS), the leading cause of inherited intellectual disability, was one of the first disorders modeled in both embryonic stem cells and induced PCSs and can serve as an exemplary case for the utilization of human PSCs in the study of human diseases. Over the past decade, FXS-PSCs have been used to address the fundamental questions regarding the pathophysiology of FXS. In this review we summarize the methodologies for generation of FXS-PSCs, discuss their advantages and disadvantages compared with existing modeling systems and describe their utilization in the study of FXS pathogenesis and in the development of targeted treatment.

Generating regionalized neuronal cells from pluripotency, a step-by-step protocol

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Agnete eKirkeby

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Human pluripotent stem cells possess the potential to generate cells for regenerative therapies in patients with neurodegenerative diseases, and constitute an excellent cell source for studying human neural development and disease modeling. Protocols for neural differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells have undergone significant progress during recent years, allowing for rapid and synchronized neural conversion. Differentiation procedures can further be combined with accurate and efficient positional patterning to yield regionalized neural progenitors and subtype-specific neurons corresponding to different parts of the developing human brain. Here, we present a step-by-step protocol for neuralization and regionalization of human pluripotent cells for transplantation studies or in vitro analysis.

Efficient CRISPR/Cas9-Based Genome Engineering in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Kime, Cody; Mandegar, Mohammad A; Srivastava, Deepak; Yamanaka, Shinya; Conklin, Bruce R; Rand, Tim A

2016-01-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPS cells) are rapidly emerging as a powerful tool for biomedical discovery. The advent of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPS cells) with human embryonic stem (hES)-cell-like properties has led to hPS cells with disease-specific genetic backgrounds for in vitro disease modeling and drug discovery as well as mechanistic and developmental studies. To fully realize this potential, it will be necessary to modify the genome of hPS cells with precision and flexibility. Pioneering experiments utilizing site-specific double-strand break (DSB)-mediated genome engineering tools, including zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs) and transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), have paved the way to genome engineering in previously recalcitrant systems such as hPS cells. However, these methods are technically cumbersome and require significant expertise, which has limited adoption. A major recent advance involving the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) endonuclease has dramatically simplified the effort required for genome engineering and will likely be adopted widely as the most rapid and flexible system for genome editing in hPS cells. In this unit, we describe commonly practiced methods for CRISPR endonuclease genomic editing of hPS cells into cell lines containing genomes altered by insertion/deletion (indel) mutagenesis or insertion of recombinant genomic DNA. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Generation of neuropeptidergic hypothalamic neurons from human pluripotent stem cells.

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Merkle, Florian T; Maroof, Asif; Wataya, Takafumi; Sasai, Yoshiki; Studer, Lorenz; Eggan, Kevin; Schier, Alexander F

2015-02-15

Hypothalamic neurons orchestrate many essential physiological and behavioral processes via secreted neuropeptides, and are relevant to human diseases such as obesity, narcolepsy and infertility. We report the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells into many of the major types of neuropeptidergic hypothalamic neurons, including those producing pro-opiolemelanocortin, agouti-related peptide, hypocretin/orexin, melanin-concentrating hormone, oxytocin, arginine vasopressin, corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) or thyrotropin-releasing hormone. Hypothalamic neurons can be generated using a 'self-patterning' strategy that yields a broad array of cell types, or via a more reproducible directed differentiation approach. Stem cell-derived human hypothalamic neurons share characteristic morphological properties and gene expression patterns with their counterparts in vivo, and are able to integrate into the mouse brain. These neurons could form the basis of cellular models, chemical screens or cellular therapies to study and treat common human diseases. © 2015. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Activation of pluripotency genes in human fibroblast cells by a novel mRNA based approach.

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Jordan R Plews

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Several methods have been used to induce somatic cells to re-enter the pluripotent state. Viral transduction of reprogramming genes yields higher efficiency but involves random insertions of viral sequences into the human genome. Although induced pluripotent stem (iPS cells can be obtained with the removable PiggyBac transposon system or an episomal system, both approaches still use DNA constructs so that resulting cell lines need to be thoroughly analyzed to confirm they are free of harmful genetic modification. Thus a method to change cell fate without using DNA will be very useful in regenerative medicine.In this study, we synthesized mRNAs encoding OCT4, SOX2, cMYC, KLF4 and SV40 large T (LT and electroporated them into human fibroblast cells. Upon transfection, fibroblasts expressed these factors at levels comparable to, or higher than those in human embryonic stem (ES cells. Ectopically expressed OCT4 localized to the cell nucleus within 4 hours after mRNA introduction. Transfecting fibroblasts with a mixture of mRNAs encoding all five factors significantly increased the expression of endogenous OCT4, NANOG, DNMT3β, REX1 and SALL4. When such transfected fibroblasts were also exposed to several small molecules (valproic acid, BIX01294 and 5'-aza-2'-deoxycytidine and cultured in human embryonic stem cell (ES medium they formed small aggregates positive for alkaline phosphatase activity and OCT4 protein within 30 days.Our results demonstrate that mRNA transfection can be a useful approach to precisely control the protein expression level and short-term expression of reprogramming factors is sufficient to activate pluripotency genes in differentiated cells.

Generation of polyhormonal and multipotent pancreatic progenitor lineages from human pluripotent stem cells.

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Korytnikov, Roman; Nostro, Maria Cristina

2016-05-15

Generation of pancreatic β-cells from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) has enormous importance in type 1 diabetes (T1D), as it is fundamental to a treatment strategy based on cellular therapeutics. Being able to generate β-cells, as well as other mature pancreatic cells, from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) will also enable the development of platforms that can be used for disease modeling and drug testing for a variety of pancreas-associated diseases, including cystic fibrosis. For this to occur, it is crucial to develop differentiation strategies that are robust and reproducible across cell lines and laboratories. In this article we describe two serum-free differentiation protocols designed to generate specific pancreatic lineages from hPSCs. Our approach employs a variety of cytokines and small molecules to mimic developmental pathways active during pancreatic organogenesis and allows for the in vitro generation of distinct pancreatic populations. The first protocol is designed to give rise to polyhormonal cells that have the potential to differentiate into glucagon-producing cells. The second protocol is geared to generate multipotent pancreatic progenitor cells, which harbor the potential to generate all pancreatic lineages including: monohormonal endocrine cells, acinar, and ductal cells. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Transient p53 suppression increases reprogramming of human fibroblasts without affecting apoptosis and DNA damage

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Rasmussen, Mikkel Aabech; Holst, Bjørn; Tümer, Zeynep

2014-01-01

The discovery of human-induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) has sparked great interest in the potential treatment of patients with their own in vitro differentiated cells. Recently, knockout of the Tumor Protein 53 (p53) gene was reported to facilitate reprogramming but unfortunately also led...... to genomic instability. Here, we report that transient suppression of p53 during nonintegrative reprogramming of human fibroblasts leads to a significant increase in expression of pluripotency markers and overall number of iPSC colonies, due to downstream suppression of p21, without affecting apoptosis...... and DNA damage. Stable iPSC lines generated with or without p53 suppression showed comparable expression of pluripotency markers and methylation patterns, displayed normal karyotypes, contained between 0 and 5 genomic copy number variations and produced functional neurons in vitro. In conclusion...

Generation of Footprint-Free Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells from Human Fibroblasts Using Episomal Plasmid Vectors.

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Ovchinnikov, Dmitry A; Sun, Jane; Wolvetang, Ernst J

2015-01-01

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) have provided novel insights into the etiology of disease and are set to transform regenerative medicine and drug screening over the next decade. The generation of human iPSCs free of a genetic footprint of the reprogramming process is crucial for the realization of these potential uses. Here we describe in detail the generation of human iPSC from control and disease-carrying individuals' fibroblasts using episomal plasmids.

Long-term maintenance of human induced pluripotent stem cells by automated cell culture system.

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Konagaya, Shuhei; Ando, Takeshi; Yamauchi, Toshiaki; Suemori, Hirofumi; Iwata, Hiroo

2015-11-17

Pluripotent stem cells, such as embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, are regarded as new sources for cell replacement therapy. These cells can unlimitedly expand under undifferentiated conditions and be differentiated into multiple cell types. Automated culture systems enable the large-scale production of cells. In addition to reducing the time and effort of researchers, an automated culture system improves the reproducibility of cell cultures. In the present study, we newly designed a fully automated cell culture system for human iPS maintenance. Using an automated culture system, hiPS cells maintained their undifferentiated state for 60 days. Automatically prepared hiPS cells had a potency of differentiation into three germ layer cells including dopaminergic neurons and pancreatic cells.

Comparison of the glycosphingolipids of human-induced pluripotent stem cells and human embryonic stem cells.

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Säljö, Karin; Barone, Angela; Vizlin-Hodzic, Dzeneta; Johansson, Bengt R; Breimer, Michael E; Funa, Keiko; Teneberg, Susann

2017-04-01

High expectations are held for human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) since they are established from autologous tissues thus overcoming the risk of allogeneic immune rejection when used in regenerative medicine. However, little is known regarding the cell-surface carbohydrate antigen profile of hiPSC compared with human embryonic stem cells (hESC). Here, glycosphingolipids were isolated from an adipocyte-derived hiPSC line, and hiPSC and hESC glycosphingolipids were compared by concurrent characterization by binding assays with carbohydrate-recognizing ligands and mass spectrometry. A high similarity between the nonacid glycosphingolipids of hiPSC and hESC was found. The nonacid glycosphingolipids P1 pentaosylceramide, x2 pentaosylceramide and H type 1 heptaosylceramide, not previously described in human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC), were characterized in both hiPSC and hESC. The composition of acid glycosphingolipids differed, with increased levels of GM3 ganglioside, and reduced levels of GD1a/GD1b in hiPSC when compared with hESC. In addition, the hESC glycosphingolipids sulf-globopentaosylceramide and sialyl-globotetraosylceramide were lacking in hiPSC. Neural stem cells differentiating from hiPSC had a reduced expression of sialyl-lactotetra, whereas expression of the GD1a ganglioside was significantly increased. Thus, while sialyl-lactotetra is a marker of undifferentiated hPSC, GD1a is a novel marker of neural differentiation. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

XPC Promotes Pluripotency of Human Dental Pulp Cells through Regulation of Oct-4/Sox2/c-Myc

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Lu Liu

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. Xeroderma pigmentosum group C (XPC, essential component of multisubunit stem cell coactivator complex (SCC, functions as the critical factor modulating pluripotency and genome integrity through interaction with Oct-4/Sox2. However, its specific role in regulating pluripotency and multilineage differentiation of human dental pulp cells (DPCs remains unknown. Methods. To elucidate the functional role XPC played in pluripotency and multilineage differentiation of DPCs, expressions of XPC in DPCs with long-term culture were examined by real-time PCR and western blot. DPCs were transfected with lentiviral-mediated human XPC gene; then transfection rate was investigated by real-time PCR and western blot. Cell cycle, apoptosis, proliferation, senescence, multilineage differentiation, and expression of Oct-4/Sox2/c-Myc in transfected DPCs were examined. Results. XPC, Oct-4, Sox2, and c-Myc were downregulated at P7 compared with P3 in DPCs with long-term culture. XPC genes were upregulated in DPCs at P2 after transfection and maintained high expression level at P3 and P7. Cell proliferation, PI value, and telomerase activity were enhanced, whereas apoptosis was suppressed in transfected DPCs. Oct-4/Sox2/c-Myc were significantly upregulated, and multilineage differentiation in DPCs with XPC overexpression was enhanced after transfection. Conclusions. XPC plays an essential role in the modulation of pluripotency and multilineage differentiation of DPCs through regulation of Oct-4/Sox2/c-Myc.

XPC Promotes Pluripotency of Human Dental Pulp Cells through Regulation of Oct-4/Sox2/c-Myc.

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Liu, Lu; Peng, Zhengjun; Xu, Zhezhen; Wei, Xi

2016-01-01

Introduction. Xeroderma pigmentosum group C (XPC), essential component of multisubunit stem cell coactivator complex (SCC), functions as the critical factor modulating pluripotency and genome integrity through interaction with Oct-4/Sox2. However, its specific role in regulating pluripotency and multilineage differentiation of human dental pulp cells (DPCs) remains unknown. Methods. To elucidate the functional role XPC played in pluripotency and multilineage differentiation of DPCs, expressions of XPC in DPCs with long-term culture were examined by real-time PCR and western blot. DPCs were transfected with lentiviral-mediated human XPC gene; then transfection rate was investigated by real-time PCR and western blot. Cell cycle, apoptosis, proliferation, senescence, multilineage differentiation, and expression of Oct-4/Sox2/c-Myc in transfected DPCs were examined. Results. XPC, Oct-4, Sox2, and c-Myc were downregulated at P7 compared with P3 in DPCs with long-term culture. XPC genes were upregulated in DPCs at P2 after transfection and maintained high expression level at P3 and P7. Cell proliferation, PI value, and telomerase activity were enhanced, whereas apoptosis was suppressed in transfected DPCs. Oct-4/Sox2/c-Myc were significantly upregulated, and multilineage differentiation in DPCs with XPC overexpression was enhanced after transfection. Conclusions. XPC plays an essential role in the modulation of pluripotency and multilineage differentiation of DPCs through regulation of Oct-4/Sox2/c-Myc.

Practical Integration-Free Episomal Methods for Generating Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Kime, Cody; Rand, Tim A; Ivey, Kathryn N; Srivastava, Deepak; Yamanaka, Shinya; Tomoda, Kiichiro

2015-10-06

The advent of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell technology has revolutionized biomedicine and basic research by yielding cells with embryonic stem (ES) cell-like properties. The use of iPS-derived cells for cell-based therapies and modeling of human disease holds great potential. While the initial description of iPS cells involved overexpression of four transcription factors via viral vectors that integrated within genomic DNA, advances in recent years by our group and others have led to safer and higher quality iPS cells with greater efficiency. Here, we describe commonly practiced methods for non-integrating induced pluripotent stem cell generation using nucleofection of episomal reprogramming plasmids. These methods are adapted from recent studies that demonstrate increased hiPS cell reprogramming efficacy with the application of three powerful episomal hiPS cell reprogramming factor vectors and the inclusion of an accessory vector expressing EBNA1. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Growth of human T lymphocyte colonies from whole blood: culture requirements and applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Knox, S.J.; Wilson, F.D.; Greenberg, B.R.; Shifrine, M.

1982-01-01

Growth of human lymphocyte colonies from whole blood following stimulation with PHA, Con A, or PPD is described. Individual colony cells were identified as T lymphocytes on the basis of surface marker and enzyme cytochemical characterizations. Colony formation increased as a power function over a wide range of cell concentrations above a critical minimal concentration. The whole blood culture system eliminates possible selective effects of lymphocyte colony techniques utilizing gradient-enriched lymphocyte fractions and more closely approximates the in vivo milieu. The whole blood colony method is more sensitive for the detection of low-level radiation effects on lymphocytes than widely used tests that measure 3 H-thymidine incorporation. In preliminary studies, researchers used the whole blood method to determine the relative radiosensitivity of lymphocytes from humans with various hematopoietic disorders, and observed abnormalities in mitogen responsiveness and colony formation in some of the patient groups. This method has wide application for studies in cellular and clinical immunology

Differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells into highly functional classical brown adipocytes.

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Nishio, Miwako; Saeki, Kumiko

2014-01-01

We describe a detailed method for directed differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells, including human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), into functional classical brown adipocytes (BAs) under serum-free and feeder-free conditions. It is a two-tiered culture system, based on very simple techniques, a floating culture and a subsequent adherent culture. It does not require gene transfer. The entire process can be carried out in about 10 days. The key point is the usage of our special hematopoietic cytokine cocktail. Almost all the differentiated cells express uncoupling protein 1, a BA-selective marker, as determined by immunostaining. The differentiated cells show characteristics of classical BA as assessed by morphology and gene/protein expression. Moreover, the expression of myoblast marker genes is transiently induced during the floating culture step. hESC/hiPSC-derived BAs show significantly higher oxygen consumption rates (OCRs) than white adipocytes generated from human mesenchymal stem cell. They also show responsiveness to adrenergic stimuli, with about twofold upregulation in OCR by β-adrenergic receptor (β-AR) agonist treatments. hESC/hiPSC-derived BAs exert in vivo calorigenic activities in response to β-AR agonist treatments as assessed by thermography. Finally, lipid and glucose metabolisms are significantly improved in hESC/hiPSC-derived BA-transplanted mice. Our system provides a highly feasible way to produce functional classical BA bearing metabolism-improving capacities from hESC/hiPSC under a feeder-free and serum-free condition without gene transfer. © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Macrophages for Unraveling Human Macrophage Biology.

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Zhang, Hanrui; Reilly, Muredach P

2017-11-01

Despite a substantial appreciation for the critical role of macrophages in cardiometabolic diseases, understanding of human macrophage biology has been hampered by the lack of reliable and scalable models for cellular and genetic studies. Human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived macrophages (IPSDM), as an unlimited source of subject genotype-specific cells, will undoubtedly play an important role in advancing our understanding of the role of macrophages in human diseases. In this review, we summarize current literature in the differentiation and characterization of IPSDM at phenotypic, functional, and transcriptomic levels. We emphasize the progress in differentiating iPSC to tissue resident macrophages, and in understanding the ontogeny of in vitro differentiated IPSDM that resembles primitive hematopoiesis, rather than adult definitive hematopoiesis. We review the application of IPSDM in modeling both Mendelian genetic disorders and host-pathogen interactions. Finally, we highlighted the potential areas of research using IPSDM in functional validation of coronary artery disease loci in genome-wide association studies, functional genomic analyses, drug testing, and cell therapeutics in cardiovascular diseases. © 2017 American Heart Association, Inc.

Biomedical and Clinical Promises of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells for Neurological Disorders

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Nopporn Jongkamonwiwat

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Neurological disorders are characterized by the chronic and progressive loss of neuronal structures and functions. There is a variability of the onsets and causes of clinical manifestations. Cell therapy has brought a new concept to overcome brain diseases, but the advancement of this therapy is limited by the demands of specialized neurons. Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs have been promised as a renewable resource for generating human neurons for both laboratory and clinical purposes. By the modulations of appropriate signalling pathways, desired neuron subtypes can be obtained, and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs provide genetically matched neurons for treating patients. These hPSC-derived neurons can also be used for disease modeling and drug screening. Since the most urgent problem today in transplantation is the lack of suitable donor organs and tissues, the derivation of neural progenitor cells from hPSCs has opened a new avenue for regenerative medicine. In this review, we summarize the recent reports that show how to generate neural derivatives from hPSCs, and discuss the current evidence of using these cells in animal studies. We also highlight the possibilities and concerns of translating these hPSC-derived neurons for biomedical and clinical uses in order to fight against neurological disorders.

Directed Differentiation of Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells to Mesenchymal Stem Cells.

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Lian, Qizhou; Zhang, Yuelin; Liang, Xiaoting; Gao, Fei; Tse, Hung-Fat

2016-01-01

Multipotent stromal cells, also known as mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), possess great potential to generate a wide range of cell types including endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, bone, cartilage, and lipid cells. This protocol describes in detail how to perform highly efficient, lineage-specific differentiation of human-induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) with an MSCs fate. The approach uses a clinically compliant protocol with chemically defined media, feeder-free conditions, and a CD105 positive and CD24 negative selection to achieve a single cell-based MSCs derivation from differentiating human pluripotent cells in approximately 20 days. Cells generated with this protocol express typical MSCs surface markers and undergo adipogenesis, osteogenesis, and chondrogenesis similar to adult bone marrow-derived MSCs (BM-MSCs). Nonetheless, compared with adult BM-MSCs, iPSC-MSCs display a higher proliferative capacity, up to 120 passages, without obvious loss of self-renewal potential and constitutively express MSCs surface antigens. MSCs generated with this protocol have numerous applications, including expansion to large scale cell numbers for tissue engineering and the development of cellular therapeutics. This approach has been used to rescue limb ischemia, allergic disorders, and cigarette smoke-induced lung damage and to model mesenchymal and vascular disorders of Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS).

Diffuse colonies of human skin fibroblasts in relation to cellular senescence and proliferation.

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Zorin, Vadim; Zorina, Alla; Smetanina, Nadezhda; Kopnin, Pavel; Ozerov, Ivan V; Leonov, Sergey; Isaev, Artur; Klokov, Dmitry; Osipov, Andreyan N

2017-05-16

Development of personalized skin treatment in medicine and skin care may benefit from simple and accurate evaluation of the fraction of senescent skin fibroblasts that lost their proliferative capacity. We examined whether enriched analysis of colonies formed by primary human skin fibroblasts, a simple and widely available cellular assay, could reveal correlations with the fraction of senescent cells in heterogenic cell population. We measured fractions of senescence associated β-galactosidase (SA-βgal) positive cells in either mass cultures or colonies of various morphological types (dense, mixed and diffuse) formed by skin fibroblasts from 10 human donors. Although the donors were chosen to be within the same age group (33-54 years), the colony forming efficiency of their fibroblasts (ECO-f) and the percentage of dense, mixed and diffuse colonies varied greatly among the donors. We showed, for the first time, that the SA-βgal positive fraction was the largest in diffuse colonies, confirming that they originated from cells with the least proliferative capacity. The percentage of diffuse colonies was also found to correlate with the SA-βgal positive cells in mass culture. Using Ki67 as a cell proliferation marker, we further demonstrated a strong inverse correlation (r=-0.85, p=0.02) between the percentage of diffuse colonies and the fraction of Ki67+ cells. Moreover, a significant inverse correlation (r=-0.94, p=0.0001) between the percentage of diffuse colonies and ECO-f was found. Our data indicate that quantification of a fraction of diffuse colonies may provide a simple and useful method to evaluate the extent of cellular senescence in human skin fibroblasts.

Highly efficient reprogramming to pluripotency and directed differentiation of human cells with synthetic modified mRNA.

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Warren, Luigi; Manos, Philip D; Ahfeldt, Tim; Loh, Yuin-Han; Li, Hu; Lau, Frank; Ebina, Wataru; Mandal, Pankaj K; Smith, Zachary D; Meissner, Alexander; Daley, George Q; Brack, Andrew S; Collins, James J; Cowan, Chad; Schlaeger, Thorsten M; Rossi, Derrick J

2010-11-05

Clinical application of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) is limited by the low efficiency of iPSC derivation and the fact that most protocols modify the genome to effect cellular reprogramming. Moreover, safe and effective means of directing the fate of patient-specific iPSCs toward clinically useful cell types are lacking. Here we describe a simple, nonintegrating strategy for reprogramming cell fate based on administration of synthetic mRNA modified to overcome innate antiviral responses. We show that this approach can reprogram multiple human cell types to pluripotency with efficiencies that greatly surpass established protocols. We further show that the same technology can be used to efficiently direct the differentiation of RNA-induced pluripotent stem cells (RiPSCs) into terminally differentiated myogenic cells. This technology represents a safe, efficient strategy for somatic cell reprogramming and directing cell fate that has broad applicability for basic research, disease modeling, and regenerative medicine. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Derivation of porcine pluripotent stem cells for biomedical research.

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Shiue, Yow-Ling; Yang, Jenn-Rong; Liao, Yu-Jing; Kuo, Ting-Yung; Liao, Chia-Hsin; Kang, Ching-Hsun; Tai, Chein; Anderson, Gary B; Chen, Lih-Ren

2016-07-01

Pluripotent stem cells including embryonic stem cells (ESCs), embryonic germ cells (EGCs), and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are capable of self-renew and limitlessly proliferating in vitro with undifferentiated characteristics. They are able to differentiate in vitro, spontaneously or responding to suitable signals, into cells of all three primary germ layers. Consequently, these pluripotent stem cells will be valuable sources for cell replacement therapy in numerous disorders. However, the promise of human ESCs and EGCs is cramped by the ethical argument about destroying embryos and fetuses for cell line creation. Moreover, there are still carcinogenic risks existing toward the goal of clinical application for human ESCs, EGCs, and iPSCs. Therefore, a suitable animal model for stem cell research will benefit the further development of human stem cell technology. The pigs, on the basis of their similarity in anatomy, immunology, physiology, and biochemical properties, have been wide used as model animals in the study of various human diseases. The development of porcine pluripotent stem cell lines will hold the opportunity to provide an excellent material for human counterpart to the transplantation in biomedical research and further development of cell-based therapeutic strategy. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A data analysis framework for biomedical big data: Application on mesoderm differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells.

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Ulfenborg, Benjamin; Karlsson, Alexander; Riveiro, Maria; Améen, Caroline; Åkesson, Karolina; Andersson, Christian X; Sartipy, Peter; Synnergren, Jane

2017-01-01

The development of high-throughput biomolecular technologies has resulted in generation of vast omics data at an unprecedented rate. This is transforming biomedical research into a big data discipline, where the main challenges relate to the analysis and interpretation of data into new biological knowledge. The aim of this study was to develop a framework for biomedical big data analytics, and apply it for analyzing transcriptomics time series data from early differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells towards the mesoderm and cardiac lineages. To this end, transcriptome profiling by microarray was performed on differentiating human pluripotent stem cells sampled at eleven consecutive days. The gene expression data was analyzed using the five-stage analysis framework proposed in this study, including data preparation, exploratory data analysis, confirmatory analysis, biological knowledge discovery, and visualization of the results. Clustering analysis revealed several distinct expression profiles during differentiation. Genes with an early transient response were strongly related to embryonic- and mesendoderm development, for example CER1 and NODAL. Pluripotency genes, such as NANOG and SOX2, exhibited substantial downregulation shortly after onset of differentiation. Rapid induction of genes related to metal ion response, cardiac tissue development, and muscle contraction were observed around day five and six. Several transcription factors were identified as potential regulators of these processes, e.g. POU1F1, TCF4 and TBP for muscle contraction genes. Pathway analysis revealed temporal activity of several signaling pathways, for example the inhibition of WNT signaling on day 2 and its reactivation on day 4. This study provides a comprehensive characterization of biological events and key regulators of the early differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells towards the mesoderm and cardiac lineages. The proposed analysis framework can be used to structure

Anti-aging effects of vitamin C on human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes.

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Kim, Yoon Young; Ku, Seung-Yup; Huh, Yul; Liu, Hung-Ching; Kim, Seok Hyun; Choi, Young Min; Moon, Shin Yong

2013-10-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have arisen as a source of cells for biomedical research due to their developmental potential. Stem cells possess the promise of providing clinicians with novel treatments for disease as well as allowing researchers to generate human-specific cellular metabolism models. Aging is a natural process of living organisms, yet aging in human heart cells is difficult to study due to the ethical considerations regarding human experimentation as well as a current lack of alternative experimental models. hPSC-derived cardiomyocytes (CMs) bear a resemblance to human cardiac cells and thus hPSC-derived CMs are considered to be a viable alternative model to study human heart cell aging. In this study, we used hPSC-derived CMs as an in vitro aging model. We generated cardiomyocytes from hPSCs and demonstrated the process of aging in both human embryonic stem cell (hESC)- and induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived CMs. Aging in hESC-derived CMs correlated with reduced membrane potential in mitochondria, the accumulation of lipofuscin, a slower beating pattern, and the downregulation of human telomerase RNA (hTR) and cell cycle regulating genes. Interestingly, the expression of hTR in hiPSC-derived CMs was not significantly downregulated, unlike in hESC-derived CMs. In order to delay aging, vitamin C was added to the cultured CMs. When cells were treated with 100 μM of vitamin C for 48 h, anti-aging effects, specifically on the expression of telomere-related genes and their functionality in aging cells, were observed. Taken together, these results suggest that hPSC-derived CMs can be used as a unique human cardiomyocyte aging model in vitro and that vitamin C shows anti-aging effects in this model.

Generation of Cardiomyocytes from Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Nakahama, Hiroko; Di Pasquale, Elisa

2016-01-01

The advent of pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) enabled a multitude of studies for modeling the development of diseases and testing pharmaceutical therapeutic potential in vitro. These PSCs have been differentiated to multiple cell types to demonstrate its pluripotent potential, including cardiomyocytes (CMs). However, the efficiency and efficacy of differentiation vary greatly between different cell lines and methods. Here, we describe two different methods for acquiring CMs from human pluripotent lines. One method involves the generation of embryoid bodies, which emulates the natural developmental process, while the other method chemically activates the canonical Wnt signaling pathway to induce a monolayer of cardiac differentiation.

CD24 tracks divergent pluripotent states in mouse and human cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Shakiba, Nika; White, Carl A; Lipsitz, Yonatan Y; Yachie-Kinoshita, Ayako; Tonge, Peter D; Hussein, Samer M I; Puri, Mira C; Elbaz, Judith; Morrissey-Scoot, James; Li, Mira; Munoz Peralta, Javier; Benevento, Marco; Rogers, Ian M; Hanna, Jacob H; Heck, Albert J R; Wollscheid, Bernd; Nagy, Andras; Zandstra, Peter W

2015-01-01

Reprogramming is a dynamic process that can result in multiple pluripotent cell types emerging from divergent paths. Cell surface protein expression is a particularly desirable tool to categorize reprogramming and pluripotency as it enables robust quantification and enrichment of live cells. Here we

Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells as a Platform for Personalized and Precision Cardiovascular Medicine.

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Matsa, Elena; Ahrens, John H; Wu, Joseph C

2016-07-01

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) have revolutionized the field of human disease modeling, with an enormous potential to serve as paradigm shifting platforms for preclinical trials, personalized clinical diagnosis, and drug treatment. In this review, we describe how hiPSCs could transition cardiac healthcare away from simple disease diagnosis to prediction and prevention, bridging the gap between basic and clinical research to bring the best science to every patient. Copyright © 2016 the American Physiological Society.

A simplified protocol for differentiation of electrophysiologically mature neuronal networks from human induced pluripotent stem cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

N. Gunhanlar (Nilhan); G. Shpak (Guy); M. Van Der Kroeg; L.A. Gouty-Colomer; S.T. Munshi (Shashini T.); B. Lendemeijer (Bert); M. Ghazvini (Mehrnaz); C. Dupont (Claire); W.J.G. Hoogendijk (Witte); J.H. Gribnau (Joost); F.M.S. Vrij (Femke); S.A. Kushner (Steven)

2017-01-01

textabstractProgress in elucidating the molecular and cellular pathophysiology of neuropsychiatric disorders has been hindered by the limited availability of living human brain tissue. The emergence of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) has offered a unique alternative strategy using

Relationship of colony-stimulating activity to apparent kill of human colony-forming cells by irradiation and hydroxyurea

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Broxmeyer, H.E.; Galbraith, P.R.; Baker, F.L.

1976-01-01

Suspensions of human bone marrow cells were subjected to 137 Cs irradiation in vitro and then cultured in semisolid agar medium. Cultures of irradiated cells were stimulated with colony-stimulating activity (CSA) of different potencies, and it was found that the amount of stimulation applied to cultures influenced the apparent kill of colony-forming cells (CFC). It was also found that the effects of irradiation on colony formation were not confined to CFC kill since medium conditioned by cells during irradiation exhibited stimulatory and inhibitory properties after treatment by 600 and 1000 rads, respectively. Studies in which irradiated cells were pretreated with hydroxyurea indicated that CFC in the DNA synthetic phase of the cell cycle were particularly sensitive to low doses of irradiation. The proliferative capacity of CFC surviving 1000 rads was undiminished as judged by their ability to form large colonies. Estimates of CFC kill by hydroxyurea were also affected by the level of CSA

Highly efficient methods to obtain homogeneous dorsal neural progenitor cells from human and mouse embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Zhang, Meixiang; Ngo, Justine; Pirozzi, Filomena; Sun, Ying-Pu; Wynshaw-Boris, Anthony

2018-03-15

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have been widely used to generate cellular models harboring specific disease-related genotypes. Of particular importance are ESC and iPSC applications capable of producing dorsal telencephalic neural progenitor cells (NPCs) that are representative of the cerebral cortex and overcome the challenges of maintaining a homogeneous population of cortical progenitors over several passages in vitro. While previous studies were able to derive NPCs from pluripotent cell types, the fraction of dorsal NPCs in this population is small and decreases over several passages. Here, we present three protocols that are highly efficient in differentiating mouse and human ESCs, as well as human iPSCs, into a homogeneous and stable population of dorsal NPCs. These protocols will be useful for modeling cerebral cortical neurological and neurodegenerative disorders in both mouse and human as well as for high-throughput drug screening for therapeutic development. We optimized three different strategies for generating dorsal telencephalic NPCs from mouse and human pluripotent cell types through single or double inhibition of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) and/or SMAD pathways. Mouse and human pluripotent cells were aggregated to form embryoid bodies in suspension and were treated with dorsomorphin alone (BMP inhibition) or combined with SB431542 (double BMP/SMAD inhibition) during neural induction. Neural rosettes were then selected from plated embryoid bodies to purify the population of dorsal NPCs. We tested the expression of key dorsal NPC markers as well as nonectodermal markers to confirm the efficiency of our three methods in comparison to published and commercial protocols. Single and double inhibition of BMP and/or SMAD during neural induction led to the efficient differentiation of dorsal NPCs, based on the high percentage of PAX6-positive cells and the NPC gene expression profile. There were no statistically

Direct contact with endoderm-like cells efficiently induces cardiac progenitors from mouse and human pluripotent stem cells.

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Hideki Uosaki

Full Text Available RATIONALE: Pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiac progenitor cells (CPCs have emerged as a powerful tool to study cardiogenesis in vitro and a potential cell source for cardiac regenerative medicine. However, available methods to induce CPCs are not efficient or require high-cost cytokines with extensive optimization due to cell line variations. OBJECTIVE: Based on our in-vivo observation that early endodermal cells maintain contact with nascent pre-cardiac mesoderm, we hypothesized that direct physical contact with endoderm promotes induction of CPCs from pluripotent cells. METHOD AND RESULT: To test the hypothesis, we cocultured mouse embryonic stem (ES cells with the endodermal cell line End2 by co-aggregation or End2-conditioned medium. Co-aggregation resulted in strong induction of Flk1(+ PDGFRa(+ CPCs in a dose-dependent manner, but the conditioned medium did not, indicating that direct contact is necessary for this process. To determine if direct contact with End2 cells also promotes the induction of committed cardiac progenitors, we utilized several mouse ES and induced pluripotent (iPS cell lines expressing fluorescent proteins under regulation of the CPC lineage markers Nkx2.5 or Isl1. In agreement with earlier data, co-aggregation with End2 cells potently induces both Nkx2.5(+ and Isl1(+ CPCs, leading to a sheet of beating cardiomyocytes. Furthermore, co-aggregation with End2 cells greatly promotes the induction of KDR(+ PDGFRa(+ CPCs from human ES cells. CONCLUSIONS: Our co-aggregation method provides an efficient, simple and cost-effective way to induce CPCs from mouse and human pluripotent cells.

Characterization of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-derived Human Serotonergic Neurons

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Lining Cao

2017-05-01

Full Text Available In the brain, the serotonergic neurons located in the raphe nucleus are the unique resource of the neurotransmitter serotonin, which plays a pivotal role in the regulation of brain development and functions. Dysfunction of the serotonin system is present in many psychiatric disorders. Lack of in vitro functional human model limits the understanding of human central serotonergic system and its related diseases and clinical applications. Previously, we have developed a method generating human serotonergic neurons from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs. In this study, we analyzed the features of these human iPSCs-derived serotonergic neurons both in vitro and in vivo. We found that these human serotonergic neurons are sensitive to the selective neurotoxin 5, 7-Dihydroxytryptamine (5,7-DHT in vitro. After being transplanted into newborn mice, the cells not only expressed their typical molecular markers, but also showed the migration and projection to the host’s cerebellum, hindbrain and spinal cord. The data demonstrate that these human iPSCs-derived neurons exhibit the typical features as the serotonergic neurons in the brain, which provides a solid foundation for studying on human serotonin system and its related disorders.

Is Human-induced Pluripotent Stem Cell the Best Optimal?

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Wang, Feng; Kong, Jie; Cui, Yi-Yao; Liu, Peng; Wen, Jian-Yan

2018-04-05

Since the advent of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology a decade ago, enormous progress has been made in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine. Human iPSCs have been widely used for disease modeling, drug discovery, and cell therapy development. In this review, we discuss the progress in applications of iPSC technology that are particularly relevant to drug discovery and regenerative medicine, and consider the remaining challenges and the emerging opportunities in the field. Articles in this review were searched from PubMed database from January 2014 to December 2017. Original articles about iPSCs and cardiovascular diseases were included and analyzed. iPSC holds great promises for human disease modeling, drug discovery, and stem cell-based therapy, and this potential is only beginning to be realized. However, several important issues remain to be addressed. The recent availability of human cardiomyocytes derived from iPSCs opens new opportunities to build in vitro models of cardiac disease, screening for new drugs and patient-specific cardiac therapy.

Generation of a human induced pluripotent stem cell line from urinary cells of a patient with primary congenital glaucoma using integration free Sendai technology.

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Zhang, Jingxue; Wu, Shen; Hu, Man; Liu, Qian

2018-04-09

We have generated a human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) line derived from urinary cells of a 10years old patient with primary congenital glaucoma (PCG). The cells were reprogrammed with the human OSKM transcription factors using the Sendai-virus delivery system and shown to have full differentiation potential. The line is available and registered in the human pluripotent stem cell registry as BIOi001-A. Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Identification of stable reference genes in differentiating human pluripotent stem cells.

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Holmgren, Gustav; Ghosheh, Nidal; Zeng, Xianmin; Bogestål, Yalda; Sartipy, Peter; Synnergren, Jane

2015-06-01

Reference genes, often referred to as housekeeping genes (HKGs), are frequently used to normalize gene expression data based on the assumption that they are expressed at a constant level in the cells. However, several studies have shown that there may be a large variability in the gene expression levels of HKGs in various cell types. In a previous study, employing human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) subjected to spontaneous differentiation, we observed that the expression of commonly used HKG varied to a degree that rendered them inappropriate to use as reference genes under those experimental settings. Here we present a substantially extended study of the HKG signature in human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC), including nine global gene expression datasets from both hESC and human induced pluripotent stem cells, obtained during directed differentiation toward endoderm-, mesoderm-, and ectoderm derivatives. Sets of stably expressed genes were compiled, and a handful of genes (e.g., EID2, ZNF324B, CAPN10, and RABEP2) were identified as generally applicable reference genes in hPSCs across all cell lines and experimental conditions. The stability in gene expression profiles was confirmed by reverse transcription quantitative PCR analysis. Taken together, the current results suggest that differentiating hPSCs have a distinct HKG signature, which in some aspects is different from somatic cell types, and underscore the necessity to validate the stability of reference genes under the actual experimental setup used. In addition, the novel putative HKGs identified in this study can preferentially be used for normalization of gene expression data obtained from differentiating hPSCs. Copyright © 2015 the American Physiological Society.

Induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neuron as a human model for testing environmentally induced developmental neurotoxicity

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Induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neurons as a human model for testing environmentally induced developmental neurotoxicity Ingrid L. Druwe1, Timothy J. Shafer2, Kathleen Wallace2, Pablo Valdivia3 ,and William R. Mundy2. 1University of North Carolina, Curriculum in Toxicology...

Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells from Basic Research to Potential Clinical Applications in Cancer

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Teresa de Souza Fernandez

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs are derived from a direct reprogramming of human somatic cells to a pluripotent stage through ectopic expression of specific transcription factors. These cells have two important properties, which are the self-renewal capacity and the ability to differentiate into any cell type of the human body. So, the discovery of hiPSCs opens new opportunities in biomedical sciences, since these cells may be useful for understanding the mechanisms of diseases in the production of new diseases models, in drug development/drug toxicity tests, gene therapies, and cell replacement therapies. However, the hiPSCs technology has limitations including the potential for the development of genetic and epigenetic abnormalities leading to tumorigenicity. Nowadays, basic research in the hiPSCs field has made progress in the application of new strategies with the aim to enable an efficient production of high-quality of hiPSCs for safety and efficacy, necessary to the future application for clinical practice. In this review, we show the recent advances in hiPSCs’ basic research and some potential clinical applications focusing on cancer. We also present the importance of the use of statistical methods to evaluate the possible validation for the hiPSCs for future therapeutic use toward personalized cell therapies.

An inducible CRISPR-ON system for controllable gene activation in human pluripotent stem cells.

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Guo, Jianying; Ma, Dacheng; Huang, Rujin; Ming, Jia; Ye, Min; Kee, Kehkooi; Xie, Zhen; Na, Jie

2017-05-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) are an important system to study early human development, model human diseases, and develop cell replacement therapies. However, genetic manipulation of hPSCs is challenging and a method to simultaneously activate multiple genomic sites in a controllable manner is sorely needed. Here, we constructed a CRISPR-ON system to efficiently upregulate endogenous genes in hPSCs. A doxycycline (Dox) inducible dCas9-VP64-p65-Rta (dCas9-VPR) transcription activator and a reverse Tet transactivator (rtTA) expression cassette were knocked into the two alleles of the AAVS1 locus to generate an iVPR hESC line. We showed that the dCas9-VPR level could be precisely and reversibly controlled by the addition and withdrawal of Dox. Upon transfection of multiplexed gRNA plasmid targeting the NANOG promoter and Dox induction, we were able to control NANOG gene expression from its endogenous locus. Interestingly, an elevated NANOG level promoted naïve pluripotent gene expression, enhanced cell survival and clonogenicity, and enabled hESCs to integrate with the inner cell mass (ICM) of mouse blastocysts in vitro. Thus, iVPR cells provide a convenient platform for gene function studies as well as high-throughput screens in hPSCs.

Optimizing the method for generation of integration-free induced pluripotent stem cells from human peripheral blood.

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Gu, Haihui; Huang, Xia; Xu, Jing; Song, Lili; Liu, Shuping; Zhang, Xiao-Bing; Yuan, Weiping; Li, Yanxin

2018-06-15

Generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from human peripheral blood provides a convenient and low-invasive way to obtain patient-specific iPSCs. The episomal vector is one of the best approaches for reprogramming somatic cells to pluripotent status because of its simplicity and affordability. However, the efficiency of episomal vector reprogramming of adult peripheral blood cells is relatively low compared with cord blood and bone marrow cells. In the present study, integration-free human iPSCs derived from peripheral blood were established via episomal technology. We optimized mononuclear cell isolation and cultivation, episomal vector promoters, and a combination of transcriptional factors to improve reprogramming efficiency. Here, we improved the generation efficiency of integration-free iPSCs from human peripheral blood mononuclear cells by optimizing the method of isolating mononuclear cells from peripheral blood, by modifying the integration of culture medium, and by adjusting the duration of culture time and the combination of different episomal vectors. With this optimized protocol, a valuable asset for banking patient-specific iPSCs has been established.

Generation of functional podocytes from human induced pluripotent stem cells

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Osele Ciampi

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Generating human podocytes in vitro could offer a unique opportunity to study human diseases. Here, we describe a simple and efficient protocol for obtaining functional podocytes in vitro from human induced pluripotent stem cells. Cells were exposed to a three-step protocol, which induced their differentiation into intermediate mesoderm, then into nephron progenitors and, finally, into mature podocytes. After differentiation, cells expressed the main podocyte markers, such as synaptopodin, WT1, α-Actinin-4, P-cadherin and nephrin at the protein and mRNA level, and showed the low proliferation rate typical of mature podocytes. Exposure to Angiotensin II significantly decreased the expression of podocyte genes and cells underwent cytoskeleton rearrangement. Cells were able to internalize albumin and self-assembled into chimeric 3D structures in combination with dissociated embryonic mouse kidney cells. Overall, these findings demonstrate the establishment of a robust protocol that, mimicking developmental stages, makes it possible to derive functional podocytes in vitro.

Generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells from urinary cells of a healthy donor using a non-integration system.

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Uhm, Kyung-Ok; Jo, Eun Hee; Go, Gue Youn; Kim, So-Jung; Choi, Hye Young; Im, Young Sam; Ha, Hye-Yeong; Jung, Ji-Won; Koo, Soo Kyung

2017-05-01

Urinary cells can be an ideal source for generating hiPSCs and progenitors, as they are easily accessible, non-invasive, and universally available. We generated human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) from the urinary cells of a healthy donor using a Sendai virus-based gene delivery method. The generated hiPSC line, KSCBi001-A, has a normal karyotype (46,XY). The pluripotency and capacity of multilineage differentiation were characterized by comparison with those of a human embryonic stem cell line. This cell line is registered and available from National Stem Cell Bank, Korea National Institute of Health. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Pluripotent cells in farm animals: state of the art and future perspectives.

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Nowak-Imialek, Monika; Niemann, Heiner

2012-01-01

Pluripotent cells, such as embryonic stem (ES) cells, embryonic germ cells and embryonic carcinoma cells are a unique type of cell because they remain undifferentiated indefinitely in in vitro culture, show self-renewal and possess the ability to differentiate into derivatives of the three germ layers. These capabilities make them a unique in vitro model for studying development, differentiation and for targeted modification of the genome. True pluripotent ESCs have only been described in the laboratory mouse and rat. However, rodent physiology and anatomy differ substantially from that of humans, detracting from the value of the rodent model for studies of human diseases and the development of cellular therapies in regenerative medicine. Recently, progress in the isolation of pluripotent cells in farm animals has been made and new technologies for reprogramming of somatic cells into a pluripotent state have been developed. Prior to clinical application of therapeutic cells differentiated from pluripotent stem cells in human patients, their survival and the absence of tumourigenic potential must be assessed in suitable preclinical large animal models. The establishment of pluripotent cell lines in farm animals may provide new opportunities for the production of transgenic animals, would facilitate development and validation of large animal models for evaluating ESC-based therapies and would thus contribute to the improvement of human and animal health. This review summarises the recent progress in the derivation of pluripotent and reprogrammed cells from farm animals. We refer to our recent review on this area, to which this article is complementary.

Comparative study of human-induced pluripotent stem cells derived from bone marrow cells, hair keratinocytes, and skin fibroblasts.

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Streckfuss-Bömeke, Katrin; Wolf, Frieder; Azizian, Azadeh; Stauske, Michael; Tiburcy, Malte; Wagner, Stefan; Hübscher, Daniela; Dressel, Ralf; Chen, Simin; Jende, Jörg; Wulf, Gerald; Lorenz, Verena; Schön, Michael P; Maier, Lars S; Zimmermann, Wolfram H; Hasenfuss, Gerd; Guan, Kaomei

2013-09-01

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) provide a unique opportunity for the generation of patient-specific cells for use in disease modelling, drug screening, and regenerative medicine. The aim of this study was to compare human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) derived from different somatic cell sources regarding their generation efficiency and cardiac differentiation potential, and functionalities of cardiomyocytes. We generated hiPSCs from hair keratinocytes, bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), and skin fibroblasts by using two different virus systems. We show that MSCs and fibroblasts are more easily reprogrammed than keratinocytes. This corresponds to higher methylation levels of minimal promoter regions of the OCT4 and NANOG genes in keratinocytes than in MSCs and fibroblasts. The success rate and reprogramming efficiency was significantly higher by using the STEMCCA system than the OSNL system. All analysed hiPSCs are pluripotent and show phenotypical characteristics similar to human embryonic stem cells. We studied the cardiac differentiation efficiency of generated hiPSC lines (n = 24) and found that MSC-derived hiPSCs exhibited a significantly higher efficiency to spontaneously differentiate into beating cardiomyocytes when compared with keratinocyte-, and fibroblast-derived hiPSCs. There was no significant difference in the functionalities of the cardiomyocytes derived from hiPSCs with different origins, showing the presence of pacemaker-, atrial-, ventricular- and Purkinje-like cardiomyocytes, and exhibiting rhythmic Ca2+ transients and Ca2+ sparks in hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes. Furthermore, spontaneously and synchronously beating and force-developing engineered heart tissues were generated. Human-induced pluripotent stem cells can be reprogrammed from all three somatic cell types, but with different efficiency. All analysed iPSCs can differentiate into cardiomyocytes, and the functionalities of cardiomyocytes derived from different cell

Elimination of remaining undifferentiated induced pluripotent stem cells in the process of human cardiac cell sheet fabrication using a methionine-free culture condition.

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Matsuura, Katsuhisa; Kodama, Fumiko; Sugiyama, Kasumi; Shimizu, Tatsuya; Hagiwara, Nobuhisa; Okano, Teruo

2015-03-01

Cardiac tissue engineering is a promising method for regenerative medicine. Although we have developed human cardiac cell sheets by integration of cell sheet-based tissue engineering and scalable bioreactor culture, the risk of contamination by induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells in cardiac cell sheets remains unresolved. In the present study, we established a novel culture method to fabricate human cardiac cell sheets with a decreased risk of iPS cell contamination while maintaining viabilities of iPS cell-derived cells, including cardiomyocytes and fibroblasts, using a methionine-free culture condition. When cultured in the methionine-free condition, human iPS cells did not survive without feeder cells and could not proliferate or form colonies on feeder cells or in coculture with cells for cardiac cell sheet fabrication. When iPS cell-derived cells after the cardiac differentiation were transiently cultured in the methionine-free condition, gene expression of OCT3/4 and NANOG was downregulated significantly compared with that in the standard culture condition. Furthermore, in fabricated cardiac cell sheets, spontaneous and synchronous beating was observed in the whole area while maintaining or upregulating the expression of various cardiac and extracellular matrix genes. These findings suggest that human iPS cells are methionine dependent and a methionine-free culture condition for cardiac cell sheet fabrication might reduce the risk of iPS cell contamination.

Crispr-mediated Gene Targeting of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Byrne, Susan M; Church, George M

2015-01-01

CRISPR/Cas9 nuclease systems can create double-stranded DNA breaks at specific sequences to efficiently and precisely disrupt, excise, mutate, insert, or replace genes. However, human embryonic stem or induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are more difficult to transfect and less resilient to DNA damage than immortalized tumor cell lines. Here, we describe an optimized protocol for genome engineering of human iPSCs using a simple transient transfection of plasmids and/or single-stranded oligonucleotides. With this protocol, we achieve transfection efficiencies greater than 60%, with gene disruption efficiencies from 1-25% and gene insertion/replacement efficiencies from 0.5-10% without any further selection or enrichment steps. We also describe how to design and assess optimal sgRNA target sites and donor targeting vectors; cloning individual iPSC by single cell FACS sorting, and genotyping successfully edited cells.

A feeder- and xeno-free human induced pluripotent stem cell line obtained from primary human dermal fibroblasts with epigenetic repression of reprogramming factors expression: GPCCi001-A

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Michał Stefan Lach

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The primary human dermal fibroblasts (PHDFs from breast cancer patient were obtained to generate the human induced pluripotent stem cell line GPCCi001-A via lentiviral transfection. Thus, a modified EF1a-hSTEMCCA-loxP with tetO operator which regulates transgene expression was used. This method takes advantage of epigenetic regulation of transcription and allows for stable silencing of the reprogramming factors in obtained hiPS cells. To increase the potential utility of hiPSCs for clinical applications, they were adapted to feeder- and xeno-free conditions. The pluripotency of GPCCi001-A cell line and ability to differentiate into three germ layers was confirmed.

Human Pluripotent Stem Cell-Based Assay Predicts Developmental Toxicity Potential of ToxCast Chemicals (ACT meeting)

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Worldwide initiatives to screen for toxicity potential among the thousands of chemicals currently in use require inexpensive and high-throughput in vitro models to meet their goals. The devTOX quickPredict platform is an in vitro human pluripotent stem cell-based assay used to as...

Concise Review: Kidney Generation with Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Morizane, Ryuji; Miyoshi, Tomoya; Bonventre, Joseph V

2017-11-01

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a worldwide health care problem, resulting in increased cardiovascular mortality and often leading to end-stage kidney disease, where patients require kidney replacement therapies such as hemodialysis or kidney transplantation. Loss of functional nephrons contributes to the progression of CKD, which can be attenuated but not reversed due to inability to generate new nephrons in human adult kidneys. Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), by virtue of their unlimited self-renewal and ability to differentiate into cells of all three embryonic germ layers, are attractive sources for kidney regenerative therapies. Recent advances in stem cell biology have identified key signals necessary to maintain stemness of human nephron progenitor cells (NPCs) in vitro, and led to establishment of protocols to generate NPCs and nephron epithelial cells from human fetal kidneys and hPSCs. Effective production of large amounts of human NPCs and kidney organoids will facilitate elucidation of developmental and pathobiological pathways, kidney disease modeling and drug screening as well as kidney regenerative therapies. We summarize the recent studies to induce NPCs and kidney cells from hPSCs, studies of NPC expansion from mouse and human embryonic kidneys, and discuss possible approaches in vivo to regenerate kidneys with cell therapies and the development of bioengineered kidneys. Stem Cells 2017;35:2209-2217. © 2017 AlphaMed Press.

Interspecific in vitro assay for the chimera-forming ability of human pluripotent stem cells.

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Masaki, Hideki; Kato-Itoh, Megumi; Umino, Ayumi; Sato, Hideyuki; Hamanaka, Sanae; Kobayashi, Toshihiro; Yamaguchi, Tomoyuki; Nishimura, Ken; Ohtaka, Manami; Nakanishi, Mahito; Nakauchi, Hiromitsu

2015-09-15

Functional assay limitations are an emerging issue in characterizing human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs). With rodent PSCs, chimera formation using pre-implantation embryos is the gold-standard assay of pluripotency (competence of progeny to differentiate into all three germ layers). In human PSCs (hPSCs), however, this can only be monitored via teratoma formation or in vitro differentiation, as ethical concerns preclude generation of human-human or human-animal chimeras. To circumvent this issue, we developed a functional assay utilizing interspecific blastocyst injection and in vitro culture (interspecies in vitro chimera assay) that enables the development and observation of embryos up to headfold stage. The assay uses mouse pre-implantation embryos and rat, monkey and human PSCs to create interspecies chimeras cultured in vitro to the early egg-cylinder stage. Intra- and interspecific chimera assays with rodent PSC lines were performed to confirm the consistency of results in vitro and in vivo. The behavior of chimeras developed in vitro appeared to recapitulate that of chimeras developed in vivo; that is, PSC-derived cells survived and were integrated into the epiblast of egg-cylinder-stage embryos. This indicates that the interspecific in vitro chimera assay is useful in evaluating the chimera-forming ability of rodent PSCs. However, when human induced PSCs (both conventional and naïve-like types) were injected into mouse embryos and cultured, some human cells survived but were segregated; unlike epiblast-stage rodent PSCs, they never integrated into the epiblast of egg-cylinder-stage embryos. These data suggest that the mouse-human interspecies in vitro chimera assay does not accurately reflect the early developmental potential/process of hPSCs. The use of evolutionarily more closely related species as host embryos might be necessary to evaluate the developmental potency of hPSCs. © 2015. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Low-Dose Irradiation Enhances Gene Targeting in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Hatada, Seigo; Subramanian, Aparna; Mandefro, Berhan; Ren, Songyang; Kim, Ho Won; Tang, Jie; Funari, Vincent; Baloh, Robert H; Sareen, Dhruv; Arumugaswami, Vaithilingaraja; Svendsen, Clive N

2015-09-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) are now being used for both disease modeling and cell therapy; however, efficient homologous recombination (HR) is often crucial to develop isogenic control or reporter lines. We showed that limited low-dose irradiation (LDI) using either γ-ray or x-ray exposure (0.4 Gy) significantly enhanced HR frequency, possibly through induction of DNA repair/recombination machinery including ataxia-telangiectasia mutated, histone H2A.X and RAD51 proteins. LDI could also increase HR efficiency by more than 30-fold when combined with the targeting tools zinc finger nucleases, transcription activator-like effector nucleases, and clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats. Whole-exome sequencing confirmed that the LDI administered to hPSCs did not induce gross genomic alterations or affect cellular viability. Irradiated and targeted lines were karyotypically normal and made all differentiated lineages that continued to express green fluorescent protein targeted at the AAVS1 locus. This simple method allows higher throughput of new, targeted hPSC lines that are crucial to expand the use of disease modeling and to develop novel avenues of cell therapy. The simple and relevant technique described in this report uses a low level of radiation to increase desired gene modifications in human pluripotent stem cells by an order of magnitude. This higher efficiency permits greater throughput with reduced time and cost. The low level of radiation also greatly increased the recombination frequency when combined with developed engineered nucleases. Critically, the radiation did not lead to increases in DNA mutations or to reductions in overall cellular viability. This novel technique enables not only the rapid production of disease models using human stem cells but also the possibility of treating genetically based diseases by correcting patient-derived cells. ©AlphaMed Press.

Using Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells to Model Skeletal Diseases.

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Barruet, Emilie; Hsiao, Edward C

2016-01-01

Musculoskeletal disorders affecting the bones and joints are major health problems among children and adults. Major challenges such as the genetic origins or poor diagnostics of severe skeletal disease hinder our understanding of human skeletal diseases. The recent advent of human induced pluripotent stem cells (human iPS cells) provides an unparalleled opportunity to create human-specific models of human skeletal diseases. iPS cells have the ability to self-renew, allowing us to obtain large amounts of starting material, and have the potential to differentiate into any cell types in the body. In addition, they can carry one or more mutations responsible for the disease of interest or be genetically corrected to create isogenic controls. Our work has focused on modeling rare musculoskeletal disorders including fibrodysplasia ossificans progressive (FOP), a congenital disease of increased heterotopic ossification. In this review, we will discuss our experiences and protocols differentiating human iPS cells toward the osteogenic lineage and their application to model skeletal diseases. A number of critical challenges and exciting new approaches are also discussed, which will allow the skeletal biology field to harness the potential of human iPS cells as a critical model system for understanding diseases of abnormal skeletal formation and bone regeneration.

Efficient, long term production of monocyte-derived macrophages from human pluripotent stem cells under partly-defined and fully-defined conditions.

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Bonnie van Wilgenburg

Full Text Available Human macrophages are specialised hosts for HIV-1, dengue virus, Leishmania and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Yet macrophage research is hampered by lack of appropriate cell models for modelling infection by these human pathogens, because available myeloid cell lines are, by definition, not terminally differentiated like tissue macrophages. We describe here a method for deriving monocytes and macrophages from human Pluripotent Stem Cells which improves on previously published protocols in that it uses entirely defined, feeder- and serum-free culture conditions and produces very consistent, pure, high yields across both human Embryonic Stem Cell (hESC and multiple human induced Pluripotent Stem Cell (hiPSC lines over time periods of up to one year. Cumulatively, up to ∼3×10(7 monocytes can be harvested per 6-well plate. The monocytes produced are most closely similar to the major blood monocyte (CD14(+, CD16(low, CD163(+. Differentiation with M-CSF produces macrophages that are highly phagocytic, HIV-1-infectable, and upon activation produce a pro-inflammatory cytokine profile similar to blood monocyte-derived macrophages. Macrophages are notoriously hard to genetically manipulate, as they recognise foreign nucleic acids; the lentivector system described here overcomes this, as pluripotent stem cells can be relatively simply genetically manipulated for efficient transgene expression in the differentiated cells, surmounting issues of transgene silencing. Overall, the method we describe here is an efficient, effective, scalable system for the reproducible production and genetic modification of human macrophages, facilitating the interrogation of human macrophage biology.

Bioprinting of human pluripotent stem cells and their directed differentiation into hepatocyte-like cells for the generation of mini-livers in 3D.

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Faulkner-Jones, Alan; Fyfe, Catherine; Cornelissen, Dirk-Jan; Gardner, John; King, Jason; Courtney, Aidan; Shu, Wenmiao

2015-10-21

We report the first investigation into the bioprinting of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), their response to a valve-based printing process as well as their post-printing differentiation into hepatocyte-like cells (HLCs). HLCs differentiated from both hiPSCs and human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) sources were bioprinted and examined for the presence of hepatic markers to further validate the compatibility of the valve-based bioprinting process with fragile cell transfer. Examined cells were positive for nuclear factor 4 alpha and were demonstrated to secrete albumin and have morphology that was also found to be similar to that of hepatocytes. Both hESC and hiPSC lines were tested for post-printing viability and pluripotency and were found to have negligible difference in terms of viability and pluripotency between the printed and non-printed cells. hESC-derived HLCs were 3D printed using alginate hydrogel matrix and tested for viability and albumin secretion during the remaining differentiation and were found to be hepatic in nature. 3D printed with 40-layer of HLC-containing alginate structures reached peak albumin secretion at day 21 of the differentiation protocol. This work demonstrates that the valve-based printing process is gentle enough to print human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) (both hESCs and hiPSCs) while either maintaining their pluripotency or directing their differentiation into specific lineages. The ability to bioprint hPSCs will pave the way for producing organs or tissues on demand from patient specific cells which could be used for animal-free drug development and personalized medicine.

Generation of an ICF syndrome model by efficient genome editing of human induced pluripotent stem cells using the CRISPR system.

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Horii, Takuro; Tamura, Daiki; Morita, Sumiyo; Kimura, Mika; Hatada, Izuho

2013-09-30

Genome manipulation of human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells is essential to achieve their full potential as tools for regenerative medicine. To date, however, gene targeting in human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) has proven to be extremely difficult. Recently, an efficient genome manipulation technology using the RNA-guided DNase Cas9, the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) system, has been developed. Here we report the efficient generation of an iPS cell model for immunodeficiency, centromeric region instability, facial anomalies syndrome (ICF) syndrome using the CRISPR system. We obtained iPS cells with mutations in both alleles of DNA methyltransferase 3B (DNMT3B) in 63% of transfected clones. Our data suggest that the CRISPR system is highly efficient and useful for genome engineering of human iPS cells.

Linking incomplete reprogramming to the improved pluripotency of murine embryonal carcinoma cell-derived pluripotent stem cells.

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Gang Chang

Full Text Available Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT has been proved capable of reprogramming various differentiated somatic cells into pluripotent stem cells. Recently, induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS have been successfully derived from mouse and human somatic cells by the over-expression of a combination of transcription factors. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the reprogramming mediated by either the SCNT or iPS approach are poorly understood. Increasing evidence indicates that many tumor pathways play roles in the derivation of iPS cells. Embryonal carcinoma (EC cells have the characteristics of both stem cells and cancer cells and thus they might be the better candidates for elucidating the details of the reprogramming process. Although previous studies indicate that EC cells cannot be reprogrammed into real pluripotent stem cells, the reasons for this remain unclear. Here, nuclei from mouse EC cells (P19 were transplanted into enucleated oocytes and pluripotent stem cells (P19 NTES cells were subsequently established. Interestingly, P19 NTES cells prolonged the development of tetraploid aggregated embryos compared to EC cells alone. More importantly, we found that the expression recovery of the imprinted H19 gene was dependent on the methylation state in the differential methylation region (DMR. The induction of Nanog expression, however, was independent of the promoter region DNA methylation state in P19 NTES cells. A whole-genome transcriptome analysis further demonstrated that P19 NTES cells were indeed the intermediates between P19 cells and ES cells and many interesting genes were uncovered that may be responsible for the failed reprogramming of P19 cells. To our knowledge, for the first time, we linked incomplete reprogramming to the improved pluripotency of EC cell-derived pluripotent stem cells. The candidate genes we discovered may be useful not only for understanding the mechanisms of reprogramming, but also for deciphering the

Quantitative Analysis of Human Pluripotency and Neural Specification by In-Depth (PhosphoProteomic Profiling

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Ilyas Singec

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Controlled differentiation of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs can be utilized for precise analysis of cell type identities during early development. We established a highly efficient neural induction strategy and an improved analytical platform, and determined proteomic and phosphoproteomic profiles of hESCs and their specified multipotent neural stem cell derivatives (hNSCs. This quantitative dataset (nearly 13,000 proteins and 60,000 phosphorylation sites provides unique molecular insights into pluripotency and neural lineage entry. Systems-level comparative analysis of proteins (e.g., transcription factors, epigenetic regulators, kinase families, phosphorylation sites, and numerous biological pathways allowed the identification of distinct signatures in pluripotent and multipotent cells. Furthermore, as predicted by the dataset, we functionally validated an autocrine/paracrine mechanism by demonstrating that the secreted protein midkine is a regulator of neural specification. This resource is freely available to the scientific community, including a searchable website, PluriProt.

Induction of multipotential hematopoietic progenitors from human pluripotent stem cells via re-specification of lineage-restricted precursors

Science.gov (United States)

Doulatov, Sergei; Vo, Linda T.; Chou, Stephanie S.; Kim, Peter G.; Arora, Natasha; Li, Hu; Hadland, Brandon K.; Bernstein, Irwin D.; Collins, James J.; Zon, Leonard I.; Daley, George Q.

2013-01-01

Summary Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) represent a promising source of patient-specific cells for disease modeling, drug screens, and cellular therapies. However, the inability to derive engraftable human hematopoietic stem and progenitor (HSPCs) has limited their characterization to in vitro assays. We report a strategy to re-specify lineage-restricted CD34+CD45+ myeloid precursors derived from hPSCs into multilineage progenitors that can be expanded in vitro and engraft in vivo. HOXA9, ERG, and RORA conferred self-renewal and multilineage potential in vitro and maintained primitive CD34+CD38− cells. Screening cells via transplantation revealed that two additional factors, SOX4 and MYB, were required for engraftment. Progenitors specified with all five factors gave rise to reproducible short-term engraftment with myeloid and erythroid lineages. Erythroid precursors underwent hemoglobin switching in vivo, silencing embryonic and activating adult globin expression. Our combinatorial screening approach establishes a strategy for obtaining transcription factor-mediated engraftment of blood progenitors from human pluripotent cells. PMID:24094326

Advances in reprogramming somatic cells to induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Patel, Minal; Yang, Shuying

2010-09-01

Traditionally, nuclear reprogramming of cells has been performed by transferring somatic cell nuclei into oocytes, by combining somatic and pluripotent cells together through cell fusion and through genetic integration of factors through somatic cell chromatin. All of these techniques changes gene expression which further leads to a change in cell fate. Here we discuss recent advances in generating induced pluripotent stem cells, different reprogramming methods and clinical applications of iPS cells. Viral vectors have been used to transfer transcription factors (Oct4, Sox2, c-myc, Klf4, and nanog) to induce reprogramming of mouse fibroblasts, neural stem cells, neural progenitor cells, keratinocytes, B lymphocytes and meningeal membrane cells towards pluripotency. Human fibroblasts, neural cells, blood and keratinocytes have also been reprogrammed towards pluripotency. In this review we have discussed the use of viral vectors for reprogramming both animal and human stem cells. Currently, many studies are also involved in finding alternatives to using viral vectors carrying transcription factors for reprogramming cells. These include using plasmid transfection, piggyback transposon system and piggyback transposon system combined with a non viral vector system. Applications of these techniques have been discussed in detail including its advantages and disadvantages. Finally, current clinical applications of induced pluripotent stem cells and its limitations have also been reviewed. Thus, this review is a summary of current research advances in reprogramming cells into induced pluripotent stem cells.

Pluripotent Conversion of Muscle Stem Cells Without Reprogramming Factors or Small Molecules.

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Bose, Bipasha; Shenoy P, Sudheer

2016-02-01

Muscle derived stem cells (MDSCs) are multipotent stem cells that can differentiate into several lineages including skeletal muscle precursor cells. Here, we show that MDSCs from myostatin null mice (Mstn (-/-) ) can be readily induced into pluripotent stem cells without using reprogramming factors. Microarray studies revealed a strong upregulation of markers like Leukemia Inhibitory factor (LIF) and Leukemia Inhibitory factor receptor (LIFR) in Mstn (-/-) MDSCs as compared to wild type MDSCs (WT-MDSCs). Furthermore when cultured in mouse embryonic stem cell media with LIF for 95 days, Mstn (-/-) MDSCs formed embryonic stem cell (ES) like colonies. We termed such ES like cells as the culture-induced pluripotent stem cells (CiPSC). CiPSCs from Mstn (-/-) MDSCs were phenotypically similar to ESCs, expressed high levels of Oct4, Nanog, Sox2 and SSEA-1, maintained a normal karyotype. Furthermore, CiPSCs formed embryoid bodies and teratomas when injected into immunocompromised mice. In addition, CiPSCs differentiated into somatic cells of all three lineages. We further show that culturing in ES cell media, resulted in hypermethylation and downregulation of BMP2 in Mstn(-/-) MDSCs. Western blot further confirmed a down regulation of BMP2 signaling in Mstn (-/-) MDSCs in supportive of pluripotent reprogramming. Given that down regulation of BMP2 has been shown to induce pluripotency in cells, we propose that lack of myostatin epigenetically reprograms the MDSCs to become pluripotent stem cells. Thus, here we report the successful establishment of ES-like cells from adult stem cells of the non-germline origin under culture-induced conditions without introducing reprogramming genes.

Controlling transcription in human pluripotent stem cells using CRISPR-effectors.

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Genga, Ryan M; Kearns, Nicola A; Maehr, René

2016-05-15

The ability to manipulate transcription in human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) is fundamental for the discovery of key genes and mechanisms governing cellular state and differentiation. Recently developed CRISPR-effector systems provide a systematic approach to rapidly test gene function in mammalian cells, including hPSCs. In this review, we discuss recent advances in CRISPR-effector technologies that have been employed to control transcription through gene activation, gene repression, and epigenome engineering. We describe an application of CRISPR-effector mediated transcriptional regulation in hPSCs by targeting a synthetic promoter driving a GFP transgene, demonstrating the ease and effectiveness of CRISPR-effector mediated transcriptional regulation in hPSCs. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hurdles to clinical translation of human induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Neofytou, Evgenios; O'Brien, Connor Galen; Couture, Larry A; Wu, Joseph C

2015-07-01

Human pluripotent stem cells are known to have the capacity to renew indefinitely, being intrinsically able to differentiate into many different cell types. These characteristics have generated tremendous enthusiasm about the potential applications of these cells in regenerative medicine. However, major challenges remain with the development and testing of novel experimental stem cell therapeutics in the field. In this Review, we focus on the nature of the preclinical challenges and discuss potential solutions that could help overcome them. Furthermore, we discuss the use of allogeneic versus autologous stem cell products, including a review of their respective advantages and disadvantages, major clinical requirements, quality standards, time lines, and costs of clinical grade development.

Reliable generation of induced pluripotent stem cells from human lymphoblastoid cell lines.

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Barrett, Robert; Ornelas, Loren; Yeager, Nicole; Mandefro, Berhan; Sahabian, Anais; Lenaeus, Lindsay; Targan, Stephan R; Svendsen, Clive N; Sareen, Dhruv

2014-12-01

Patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) hold great promise for many applications, including disease modeling to elucidate mechanisms involved in disease pathogenesis, drug screening, and ultimately regenerative medicine therapies. A frequently used starting source of cells for reprogramming has been dermal fibroblasts isolated from skin biopsies. However, numerous repositories containing lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) generated from a wide array of patients also exist in abundance. To date, this rich bioresource has been severely underused for iPSC generation. We first attempted to create iPSCs from LCLs using two existing methods but were unsuccessful. Here we report a new and more reliable method for LCL reprogramming using episomal plasmids expressing pluripotency factors and p53 shRNA in combination with small molecules. The LCL-derived iPSCs (LCL-iPSCs) exhibited identical characteristics to fibroblast-derived iPSCs (fib-iPSCs), wherein they retained their genotype, exhibited a normal pluripotency profile, and readily differentiated into all three germ-layer cell types. As expected, they also maintained rearrangement of the heavy chain immunoglobulin locus. Importantly, we also show efficient iPSC generation from LCLs of patients with spinal muscular atrophy and inflammatory bowel disease. These LCL-iPSCs retained the disease mutation and could differentiate into neurons, spinal motor neurons, and intestinal organoids, all of which were virtually indistinguishable from differentiated cells derived from fib-iPSCs. This method for reliably deriving iPSCs from patient LCLs paves the way for using invaluable worldwide LCL repositories to generate new human iPSC lines, thus providing an enormous bioresource for disease modeling, drug discovery, and regenerative medicine applications. ©AlphaMed Press.

Accelerated generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells with retroviral transduction and chemical inhibitors under physiological hypoxia

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Shimada, Hidenori [Department of Bioartificial Organs, Institute for Frontier Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, 53 Kawaharacho, Shogoin, Sakyoku, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan); Hashimoto, Yoshiya [Department of Biomaterials, Osaka Dental University, 8-1, Hanazonocho, Kuzuha, Hirakatashi, Osaka 573-1121 (Japan); Nakada, Akira; Shigeno, Keiji [Department of Bioartificial Organs, Institute for Frontier Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, 53 Kawaharacho, Shogoin, Sakyoku, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan); Nakamura, Tatsuo, E-mail: nakamura@frontier.kyoto-u.ac.jp [Department of Bioartificial Organs, Institute for Frontier Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, 53 Kawaharacho, Shogoin, Sakyoku, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan)

2012-01-13

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Very rapid generation of human iPS cells under optimized conditions. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Five chemical inhibitors under hypoxia boosted reprogramming. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer We performed genome-wide DNA methylation analysis. -- Abstract: Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are generated from somatic cells by the forced expression of a defined set of pluripotency-associated transcription factors. Human iPS cells can be propagated indefinitely, while maintaining the capacity to differentiate into all cell types in the body except for extra-embryonic tissues. This technology not only represents a new way to use individual-specific stem cells for regenerative medicine but also constitutes a novel method to obtain large amounts of disease-specific cells for biomedical research. Despite their great potential, the long reprogramming process (up to 1 month) remains one of the most significant challenges facing standard virus-mediated methodology. In this study, we report the accelerated generation of human iPS cells from adipose-derived stem (ADS) cells, using a new combination of chemical inhibitors under a setting of physiological hypoxia in conjunction with retroviral transduction of Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, and L-Myc. Under optimized conditions, we observed human embryonic stem (ES)-like cells as early as 6 days after the initial retroviral transduction. This was followed by the emergence of fully reprogrammed cells bearing Tra-1-81-positive and DsRed transgene-silencing properties on day 10. The resulting cell lines resembled human ES cells in many respects including proliferation rate, morphology, pluripotency-associated markers, global gene expression patterns, genome-wide DNA methylation states, and the ability to differentiate into all three of the germ layers, both in vitro and in vivo. Our method, when combined with chemical inhibitors under conditions of physiological hypoxia, offers a powerful tool for rapidly

Accelerated generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells with retroviral transduction and chemical inhibitors under physiological hypoxia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shimada, Hidenori; Hashimoto, Yoshiya; Nakada, Akira; Shigeno, Keiji; Nakamura, Tatsuo

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Very rapid generation of human iPS cells under optimized conditions. ► Five chemical inhibitors under hypoxia boosted reprogramming. ► We performed genome-wide DNA methylation analysis. -- Abstract: Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are generated from somatic cells by the forced expression of a defined set of pluripotency-associated transcription factors. Human iPS cells can be propagated indefinitely, while maintaining the capacity to differentiate into all cell types in the body except for extra-embryonic tissues. This technology not only represents a new way to use individual-specific stem cells for regenerative medicine but also constitutes a novel method to obtain large amounts of disease-specific cells for biomedical research. Despite their great potential, the long reprogramming process (up to 1 month) remains one of the most significant challenges facing standard virus-mediated methodology. In this study, we report the accelerated generation of human iPS cells from adipose-derived stem (ADS) cells, using a new combination of chemical inhibitors under a setting of physiological hypoxia in conjunction with retroviral transduction of Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, and L-Myc. Under optimized conditions, we observed human embryonic stem (ES)-like cells as early as 6 days after the initial retroviral transduction. This was followed by the emergence of fully reprogrammed cells bearing Tra-1-81-positive and DsRed transgene-silencing properties on day 10. The resulting cell lines resembled human ES cells in many respects including proliferation rate, morphology, pluripotency-associated markers, global gene expression patterns, genome-wide DNA methylation states, and the ability to differentiate into all three of the germ layers, both in vitro and in vivo. Our method, when combined with chemical inhibitors under conditions of physiological hypoxia, offers a powerful tool for rapidly generating bona fide human iPS cells and facilitates the application of i

Pluripotent cell models of fanconi anemia identify the early pathological defect in human hemoangiogenic progenitors.

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Suzuki, Naoya M; Niwa, Akira; Yabe, Miharu; Hira, Asuka; Okada, Chihiro; Amano, Naoki; Watanabe, Akira; Watanabe, Ken-Ichiro; Heike, Toshio; Takata, Minoru; Nakahata, Tatsutoshi; Saito, Megumu K

2015-04-01

Fanconi anemia (FA) is a disorder of genomic instability characterized by progressive bone marrow failure (BMF), developmental abnormalities, and an increased susceptibility to cancer. Although various consequences in hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells have been attributed to FA-BMF, the quest to identify the initial pathological event is still ongoing. To address this issue, we established induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from fibroblasts of six patients with FA and FANCA mutations. An improved reprogramming method yielded iPSC-like colonies from all patients, and iPSC clones were propagated from two patients. Quantitative evaluation of the differentiation ability demonstrated that the differentiation propensity toward the hematopoietic and endothelial lineages is already defective in early hemoangiogenic progenitors. The expression levels of critical transcription factors were significantly downregulated in these progenitors. These data indicate that the hematopoietic consequences in FA patients originate from the early hematopoietic stage and highlight the potential usefulness of iPSC technology for elucidating the pathogenesis of FA-BMF. ©AlphaMed Press.

Application of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Reprogrammed from Dental Pulp Cells: a Novel Approach for Tooth Regeneration

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Xiaoyan Zhou

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Candidate human dental stem/progenitor cells have been isolated and charac-terized from dental tissues and shown to hold the capability to differentiate into tooth-generating cells. However, ad-vances in engineering a whole tooth by these stem cells are hindered by various factors, such as the poor availability of human primitive tooth bud stem cells, difficulties in isolating and purifying dental mesenchymal stem cells and ethical controversies when using embryonic oral epithelium. As a result it is meaningful to find other autologous dental cells for the purpose of reconstructing a tooth.The hypothesis: Previous studies demonstrated that somatic cells can be reprogrammed into induced pluripotent stem cells by ex-ogenous expression Oct-4 and Sox-2. On the basis of these findings we can reasonably hypothesize that when transfected with specific transcription factors Oct-4 and Sox-2, dental pulp cells, the main cell in pulp, could also be reprogrammed into induced pluripotent stem cells, which are considered to be of best potential to regenerate a whole tooth. Evaluation of the hypothesis: After transfection with Oct-4 and Sox-2 into human dental pulp cells, the positive colonies are isolated and then identified according to the characteristics of iPS cells. These cells are further investigated the capability in differentiating into ameloblasts and odontoblasts and finally seeded onto the sur-face of a tooth-shaped biodegradable polymer scaffold to detect the ability of constructing a bioengineered tooth.

Efficient and Cost-Effective Generation of Mature Neurons From Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

OpenAIRE

Badja , Cherif; Maleeva , Galyna; El-Yazidi , Claire; Barruet , Emilie; Lasserre , Manon; Tropel , Philippe; Binetruy , Bernard; Bregestovski , Piotr; Magdinier , Frédérique

2014-01-01

The authors describe a feeder-free method of generating induced pluripotent stem cells by relying on the use of a chemically defined medium that overcomes the need for embryoid body formation and neuronal rosette isolation for neuronal precursors and terminally differentiated neuron production. This specific and efficient single-step strategy allows the production of mature neurons in 20–40 days with multiple applications, especially for modeling human pathologies.

High-Content Electrophysiological Analysis of Human Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs).

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Kong, Chi-Wing; Geng, Lin; Li, Ronald A

2018-01-01

Considerable interest has been raised to develop human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs) as a model for drug discovery and cardiotoxicity screening. High-content electrophysiological analysis of currents generated by transmembrane cell surface ion channels has been pursued to complement such emerging applications. Here we describe practical procedures and considerations for accomplishing successful assays of hPSC-CMs using an automated planar patch-clamp system.

Understanding Long-Run African Growth : Colonial Institutions or Colonial Education?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bolt, J.; Bezemer, D.J.

2009-01-01

Long-term growth in developing countries has been explained in four frameworks: 'extractive colonial institutions' (Acemoglu et al., 2001), 'colonial legal origin' (La Porta et al., 2004), 'geography' (Gallup et al., 1998) and 'colonial human capital' (Glaeser et al., 2004). In this paper we test

Alternative sources of pluripotency: science, ethics, and stem cells.

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Kastenberg, Zachary J; Odorico, Jon S

2008-07-01

Despite many advances in human embryonic stem cell (hESC) technology the ethical dilemma involving the destruction of a human embryo is one factor that has limited the development of hESC based clinical therapies. Two recent reports describing the production of pluripotent stem cells following the in vitro reprogramming of human somatic cells with certain defined factors illustrate one potential method of bypassing the ethical debate surrounding hESCs (Yu J, Vodyanik MA, Smuga-Otto K, et al. Induced pluripotent stem cell lines derived from human somatic cells. Science. 2007 Dec;318(5858):1917-1920; Takahashi K, Tanabe K, Ohnuki M, et al. Induction of pluripotent stem cells from adult human fibroblasts by defined factors. Cell. 2007 Nov;131(5): 861-872.). Other alternative methods include nuclear transfer, altered nuclear transfer, and parthenogenesis; each with its own set of advantages and disadvantages. This review discusses recent advances in these technologies with specific focus on the issues of embryo destruction, oocyte recovery, and the potential of each technology to produce large scale, patient specific cell transplantation therapies that would require little or no immunosuppression.

In vitro and in vivo imaging and tracking of intestinal organoids from human induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Jung, Kwang Bo; Lee, Hana; Son, Ye Seul; Lee, Ji Hye; Cho, Hyun-Soo; Lee, Mi-Ok; Oh, Jung-Hwa; Lee, Jaemin; Kim, Seokho; Jung, Cho-Rok; Kim, Janghwan; Son, Mi-Young

2018-01-01

Human intestinal organoids (hIOs) derived from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have immense potential as a source of intestines. Therefore, an efficient system is needed for visualizing the stage of intestinal differentiation and further identifying hIOs derived from hPSCs. Here, 2 fluorescent biosensors were developed based on human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) lines that stably expressed fluorescent reporters driven by intestine-specific gene promoters Krüppel-like factor 5 monomeric Cherry (KLF5 mCherry ) and intestine-specific homeobox enhanced green fluorescence protein (ISX eGFP ). Then hIOs were efficiently induced from those transgenic hiPSC lines in which mCherry- or eGFP-expressing cells, which appeared during differentiation, could be identified in intact living cells in real time. Reporter gene expression had no adverse effects on differentiation into hIOs and proliferation. Using our reporter system to screen for hIO differentiation factors, we identified DMH1 as an efficient substitute for Noggin. Transplanted hIOs under the kidney capsule were tracked with fluorescence imaging (FLI) and confirmed histologically. After orthotopic transplantation, the localization of the hIOs in the small intestine could be accurately visualized using FLI. Our study establishes a selective system for monitoring the in vitro differentiation and for tracking the in vivo localization of hIOs and contributes to further improvement of cell-based therapies and preclinical screenings in the intestinal field.-Jung, K. B., Lee, H., Son, Y. S., Lee, J. H., Cho, H.-S., Lee, M.-O., Oh, J.-H., Lee, J., Kim, S., Jung, C.-R., Kim, J., Son, M.-Y. In vitro and in vivo imaging and tracking of intestinal organoids from human induced pluripotent stem cells. © FASEB.

Generation of an ICF Syndrome Model by Efficient Genome Editing of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Using the CRISPR System

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Izuho Hatada

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Genome manipulation of human induced pluripotent stem (iPS cells is essential to achieve their full potential as tools for regenerative medicine. To date, however, gene targeting in human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs has proven to be extremely difficult. Recently, an efficient genome manipulation technology using the RNA-guided DNase Cas9, the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR system, has been developed. Here we report the efficient generation of an iPS cell model for immunodeficiency, centromeric region instability, facial anomalies syndrome (ICF syndrome using the CRISPR system. We obtained iPS cells with mutations in both alleles of DNA methyltransferase 3B (DNMT3B in 63% of transfected clones. Our data suggest that the CRISPR system is highly efficient and useful for genome engineering of human iPS cells.

Visualization of migration of human cortical neurons generated from induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Bamba, Yohei; Kanemura, Yonehiro; Okano, Hideyuki; Yamasaki, Mami

2017-09-01

Neuronal migration is considered a key process in human brain development. However, direct observation of migrating human cortical neurons in the fetal brain is accompanied by ethical concerns and is a major obstacle in investigating human cortical neuronal migration. We established a novel system that enables direct visualization of migrating cortical neurons generated from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). We observed the migration of cortical neurons generated from hiPSCs derived from a control and from a patient with lissencephaly. Our system needs no viable brain tissue, which is usually used in slice culture. Migratory behavior of human cortical neuron can be observed more easily and more vividly by its fluorescence and glial scaffold than that by earlier methods. Our in vitro experimental system provides a new platform for investigating development of the human central nervous system and brain malformation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Efficient Large-Scale 2D Culture System for Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells and Differentiated Cardiomyocytes

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Shugo Tohyama

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Cardiac regenerative therapies utilizing human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs are hampered by ineffective large-scale culture. hiPSCs were cultured in multilayer culture plates (CPs with active gas ventilation (AGV, resulting in stable proliferation and pluripotency. Seeding of 1 × 106 hiPSCs per layer yielded 7.2 × 108 hiPSCs in 4-layer CPs and 1.7 × 109 hiPSCs in 10-layer CPs with pluripotency. hiPSCs were sequentially differentiated into cardiomyocytes (CMs in a two-dimensional (2D differentiation protocol. The efficiency of cardiac differentiation using 10-layer CPs with AGV was 66%–87%. Approximately 6.2–7.0 × 108 cells (4-layer and 1.5–2.8 × 109 cells (10-layer were obtained with AGV. After metabolic purification with glucose- and glutamine-depleted and lactate-supplemented media, a massive amount of purified CMs was prepared. Here, we present a scalable 2D culture system using multilayer CPs with AGV for hiPSC-derived CMs, which will facilitate clinical applications for severe heart failure in the near future.

Bioprinting of human pluripotent stem cells and their directed differentiation into hepatocyte-like cells for the generation of mini-livers in 3D

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Faulkner-Jones, Alan; Cornelissen, Dirk-Jan; Shu, Wenmiao; Fyfe, Catherine; Gardner, John; King, Jason; Courtney, Aidan

2015-01-01

We report the first investigation into the bioprinting of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), their response to a valve-based printing process as well as their post-printing differentiation into hepatocyte-like cells (HLCs). HLCs differentiated from both hiPSCs and human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) sources were bioprinted and examined for the presence of hepatic markers to further validate the compatibility of the valve-based bioprinting process with fragile cell transfer. Examined cells were positive for nuclear factor 4 alpha and were demonstrated to secrete albumin and have morphology that was also found to be similar to that of hepatocytes. Both hESC and hiPSC lines were tested for post-printing viability and pluripotency and were found to have negligible difference in terms of viability and pluripotency between the printed and non-printed cells. hESC-derived HLCs were 3D printed using alginate hydrogel matrix and tested for viability and albumin secretion during the remaining differentiation and were found to be hepatic in nature. 3D printed with 40-layer of HLC-containing alginate structures reached peak albumin secretion at day 21 of the differentiation protocol. This work demonstrates that the valve-based printing process is gentle enough to print human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) (both hESCs and hiPSCs) while either maintaining their pluripotency or directing their differentiation into specific lineages. The ability to bioprint hPSCs will pave the way for producing organs or tissues on demand from patient specific cells which could be used for animal-free drug development and personalized medicine. (paper)

Small-Molecule Induction Promotes Corneal Epithelial Cell Differentiation from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Alexandra Mikhailova

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs offer unique opportunities for developing novel cell-based therapies and disease modeling. In this study, we developed a directed differentiation method for hiPSCs toward corneal epithelial progenitor cells capable of terminal differentiation toward mature corneal epithelial-like cells. In order to improve the efficiency and reproducibility of our method, we replicated signaling cues active during ocular surface ectoderm development with the help of two small-molecule inhibitors in combination with basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF in serum-free and feeder-free conditions. First, small-molecule induction downregulated the expression of pluripotency markers while upregulating several transcription factors essential for normal eye development. Second, protein expression of the corneal epithelial progenitor marker p63 was greatly enhanced, with up to 95% of cells being p63 positive after 5 weeks of differentiation. Third, corneal epithelial-like cells were obtained upon further maturation.

Scalable Generation of Universal Platelets from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Qiang Feng

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs provide a potentially replenishable source for the production of transfusable platelets. Here, we describe a method to generate megakaryocytes (MKs and functional platelets from iPSCs in a scalable manner under serum/feeder-free conditions. The method also permits the cryopreservation of MK progenitors, enabling a rapid “surge” capacity when large numbers of platelets are needed. Ultrastructural/morphological analyses show no major differences between iPSC platelets and human blood platelets. iPSC platelets form aggregates, lamellipodia, and filopodia after activation and circulate in macrophage-depleted animals and incorporate into developing mouse thrombi in a manner identical to human platelets. By knocking out the β2-microglobulin gene, we have generated platelets that are negative for the major histocompatibility antigens. The scalable generation of HLA-ABC-negative platelets from a renewable cell source represents an important step toward generating universal platelets for transfusion as well as a potential strategy for the management of platelet refractoriness.

Methods to Manipulate and Monitor Wnt Signaling in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Huggins, Ian J; Brafman, David; Willert, Karl

2016-01-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) may revolutionize medical practice by providing: (a) a renewable source of cells for tissue replacement therapies, (b) a powerful system to model human diseases in a dish, and (c) a platform for examining efficacy and safety of novel drugs. Furthermore, these cells offer a unique opportunity to study early human development in vitro, in particular, the process by which a seemingly uniform cell population interacts to give rise to the three main embryonic lineages: ectoderm, endoderm. and mesoderm. This process of lineage allocation is regulated by a number of inductive signals that are mediated by growth factors, including FGF, TGFβ, and Wnt. In this book chapter, we introduce a set of tools, methods, and protocols to specifically manipulate the Wnt signaling pathway with the intention of altering the cell fate outcome of hPSCs.

DNA damage responses in human induced pluripotent stem cells and embryonic stem cells.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olga Momcilovic

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Induced pluripotent stem (iPS cells have the capability to undergo self-renewal and differentiation into all somatic cell types. Since they can be produced through somatic cell reprogramming, which uses a defined set of transcription factors, iPS cells represent important sources of patient-specific cells for clinical applications. However, before these cells can be used in therapeutic designs, it is essential to understand their genetic stability.Here, we describe DNA damage responses in human iPS cells. We observe hypersensitivity to DNA damaging agents resulting in rapid induction of apoptosis after γ-irradiation. Expression of pluripotency factors does not appear to be diminished after irradiation in iPS cells. Following irradiation, iPS cells activate checkpoint signaling, evidenced by phosphorylation of ATM, NBS1, CHEK2, and TP53, localization of ATM to the double strand breaks (DSB, and localization of TP53 to the nucleus of NANOG-positive cells. We demonstrate that iPS cells temporary arrest cell cycle progression in the G(2 phase of the cell cycle, displaying a lack of the G(1/S cell cycle arrest similar to human embryonic stem (ES cells. Furthermore, both cell types remove DSB within six hours of γ-irradiation, form RAD51 foci and exhibit sister chromatid exchanges suggesting homologous recombination repair. Finally, we report elevated expression of genes involved in DNA damage signaling, checkpoint function, and repair of various types of DNA lesions in ES and iPS cells relative to their differentiated counterparts.High degrees of similarity in DNA damage responses between ES and iPS cells were found. Even though reprogramming did not alter checkpoint signaling following DNA damage, dramatic changes in cell cycle structure, including a high percentage of cells in the S phase, increased radiosensitivity and loss of DNA damage-induced G(1/S cell cycle arrest, were observed in stem cells generated by induced pluripotency.

Water extraction on Mars for an expanding human colony.

Science.gov (United States)

Ralphs, M; Franz, B; Baker, T; Howe, S

2015-11-01

In-situ water extraction is necessary for an extended human presence on Mars. This study looks at the water requirements of an expanding human colony on Mars and the general systems needed to supply that water from the martian atmosphere and regolith. The proposed combination of systems in order to supply the necessary water includes a system similar to Honeybee Robotics' Mobile In-Situ Water Extractor (MISWE) that uses convection, a system similar to MISWE but that directs microwave energy down a borehole, a greenhouse or hothouse type system, and a system similar to the Mars Atmospheric Resource Recovery System (MARRS). It is demonstrated that a large water extraction system that can take advantage of large deposits of water ice at site specific locations is necessary to keep up with the demands of a growing colony. Copyright © 2015 The Committee on Space Research (COSPAR). Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Video Bioinformatics Analysis of Human Embryonic Stem Cell Colony Growth

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Sabrina; Fonteno, Shawn; Satish, Shruthi; Bhanu, Bir; Talbot, Prue

2010-01-01

Because video data are complex and are comprised of many images, mining information from video material is difficult to do without the aid of computer software. Video bioinformatics is a powerful quantitative approach for extracting spatio-temporal data from video images using computer software to perform dating mining and analysis. In this article, we introduce a video bioinformatics method for quantifying the growth of human embryonic stem cells (hESC) by analyzing time-lapse videos collected in a Nikon BioStation CT incubator equipped with a camera for video imaging. In our experiments, hESC colonies that were attached to Matrigel were filmed for 48 hours in the BioStation CT. To determine the rate of growth of these colonies, recipes were developed using CL-Quant software which enables users to extract various types of data from video images. To accurately evaluate colony growth, three recipes were created. The first segmented the image into the colony and background, the second enhanced the image to define colonies throughout the video sequence accurately, and the third measured the number of pixels in the colony over time. The three recipes were run in sequence on video data collected in a BioStation CT to analyze the rate of growth of individual hESC colonies over 48 hours. To verify the truthfulness of the CL-Quant recipes, the same data were analyzed manually using Adobe Photoshop software. When the data obtained using the CL-Quant recipes and Photoshop were compared, results were virtually identical, indicating the CL-Quant recipes were truthful. The method described here could be applied to any video data to measure growth rates of hESC or other cells that grow in colonies. In addition, other video bioinformatics recipes can be developed in the future for other cell processes such as migration, apoptosis, and cell adhesion. PMID:20495527

Characterization of energy and neurotransmitter metabolism in cortical glutamatergic neurons derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Aldana, Blanca I; Zhang, Yu; Lihme, Maria Fog

2017-01-01

pathways in neurons derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC). With this aim, cultures of hiPSC-derived neurons were incubated with [U-(13)C]glucose, [U-(13)C]glutamate or [U-(13)C]glutamine. Isotopic labeling in metabolites was determined using gas chromatography coupled to mass...

20180312 - Profiling the ToxCast library with a pluripotent human (H9) embryonic stem cell assay (SOT)

Science.gov (United States)

The Stemina devTOX quickPredict platform (STM) is a human pluripotent H9 stem cell-based assay that predicts developmental toxicants. Using the STM model, we screened 1065 ToxCast chemicals and entered the data into the ToxCast data analysis pipeline. Model performance was 83.3% ...

Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells from human fetal stem cells

OpenAIRE

Guillot, P. V.

2016-01-01

Pluripotency defines the ability of stem cells to differentiate into all the lineages of the three germ layers and self-renew indefinitely. Somatic cells can regain the developmental potential of embryonic stem cells following ectopic expression of a set of transcription factors or, in certain circumstances, via modulation of culture conditions and supplementation with small molecule, that is, induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. Here, we discuss the use of fetal tissues for reprogramming, f...

Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived models to investigate human cytomegalovirus infection in neural cells.

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Leonardo D'Aiuto

Full Text Available Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV infection is one of the leading prenatal causes of congenital mental retardation and deformities world-wide. Access to cultured human neuronal lineages, necessary to understand the species specific pathogenic effects of HCMV, has been limited by difficulties in sustaining primary human neuronal cultures. Human induced pluripotent stem (iPS cells now provide an opportunity for such research. We derived iPS cells from human adult fibroblasts and induced neural lineages to investigate their susceptibility to infection with HCMV strain Ad169. Analysis of iPS cells, iPS-derived neural stem cells (NSCs, neural progenitor cells (NPCs and neurons suggests that (i iPS cells are not permissive to HCMV infection, i.e., they do not permit a full viral replication cycle; (ii Neural stem cells have impaired differentiation when infected by HCMV; (iii NPCs are fully permissive for HCMV infection; altered expression of genes related to neural metabolism or neuronal differentiation is also observed; (iv most iPS-derived neurons are not permissive to HCMV infection; and (v infected neurons have impaired calcium influx in response to glutamate.

Efficient mRNA delivery with graphene oxide-polyethylenimine for generation of footprint-free human induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Choi, Hye Yeon; Lee, Tae-Jin; Yang, Gwang-Mo; Oh, Jaesur; Won, Jihye; Han, Jihae; Jeong, Gun-Jae; Kim, Jongpil; Kim, Jin-Hoi; Kim, Byung-Soo; Cho, Ssang-Goo

2016-08-10

Clinical applications of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) require development of technologies for the production of "footprint-free" (gene integration-free) iPSCs, which avoid the potential risk of insertional mutagenesis in humans. Previously, several studies have shown that mRNA transfer can generate "footprint-free" iPSCs, but these studies did not use a delivery vehicle and thus repetitive daily transfection was required because of mRNA degradation. Here, we report an mRNA delivery system employing graphene oxide (GO)-polyethylenimine (PEI) complexes for the efficient generation of "footprint-free" iPSCs. GO-PEI complexes were found to be very effective for loading mRNA of reprogramming transcription factors and protection from mRNA degradation by RNase. Dynamic suspension cultures of GO-PEI/RNA complexes-treated cells dramatically increased the reprogramming efficiency and successfully generated rat and human iPSCs from adult adipose tissue-derived fibroblasts without repetitive daily transfection. The iPSCs showed all the hallmarks of pluripotent stem cells including expression of pluripotency genes, epigenetic reprogramming, and differentiation into the three germ layers. These results demonstrate that mRNA delivery using GO-PEI-RNA complexes can efficiently generate "footprint-free" iPSCs, which may advance the translation of iPSC technology into the clinical settings. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Generation of human-induced pluripotent stem cells from burn patient-derived skin fibroblasts using a non-integrative method.

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Fu, Shangfeng; Ding, Jianwu; Liu, Dewu; Huang, Heping; Li, Min; Liu, Yang; Tu, Longxiang; Liu, Deming

2018-01-01

Patient specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have been recognized as a possible source of cells for skin tissue engineering. They have the potential to greatly benefit patients with large areas of burned skin or skin defects. However, the integration virus-based reprogramming method is associated with a high risk of genetic mutation and mouse embryonic fibroblast feeder-cells may be a pollutant. In the present study, human skin fibroblasts (HSFs) were successfully harvested from patients with burns and patient-specific iPSCs were generated using a non-integration method with a feeder-free approach. The octamer-binding transcription factor 4 (OCT4), sex-determining region Y box 2 (SOX2) and NANOG transcription factors were delivered using Sendai virus vectors. iPSCs exhibited representative human embryonic stem cell-like morphology and proliferation characteristics. They also expressed pluripotent markers, including OCT4, NANOG, SOX2, TRA181, stage-specific embryonic antigen 4 and TRA-160, and exhibited a normal karyotype. Teratoma and embryoid body formation revealed that iPSCs were able to differentiate into cells of all three germ layers in vitro and in vivo. The results of the present study demonstrate that HSFs derived from patients with burns, may be reprogrammed into stem cells with pluripotency, which provides a basis for cell‑based skin tissue engineering in the future.

Deconstructing the pluripotency gene regulatory network

KAUST Repository

Li, Mo

2018-04-04

Pluripotent stem cells can be isolated from embryos or derived by reprogramming. Pluripotency is stabilized by an interconnected network of pluripotency genes that cooperatively regulate gene expression. Here we describe the molecular principles of pluripotency gene function and highlight post-transcriptional controls, particularly those induced by RNA-binding proteins and alternative splicing, as an important regulatory layer of pluripotency. We also discuss heterogeneity in pluripotency regulation, alternative pluripotency states and future directions of pluripotent stem cell research.

Deconstructing the pluripotency gene regulatory network

KAUST Repository

Li, Mo; Belmonte, Juan Carlos Izpisua

2018-01-01

Pluripotent stem cells can be isolated from embryos or derived by reprogramming. Pluripotency is stabilized by an interconnected network of pluripotency genes that cooperatively regulate gene expression. Here we describe the molecular principles of pluripotency gene function and highlight post-transcriptional controls, particularly those induced by RNA-binding proteins and alternative splicing, as an important regulatory layer of pluripotency. We also discuss heterogeneity in pluripotency regulation, alternative pluripotency states and future directions of pluripotent stem cell research.

PRMT8 Controls the Pluripotency and Mesodermal Fate of Human Embryonic Stem Cells By Enhancing the PI3K/AKT/SOX2 Axis.

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Jeong, Ho-Chang; Park, Soon-Jung; Choi, Jong-Jin; Go, Young-Hyun; Hong, Soon-Ki; Kwon, Ok-Seon; Shin, Joong-Gon; Kim, Rae-Kwon; Lee, Mi-Ok; Lee, Su-Jae; Shin, Hyoung Doo; Moon, Sung-Hwan; Cha, Hyuk-Jin

2017-09-01

Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) supplementation is critical to maintain the pluripotency of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) through activation of PI3K/AKT, rather than MEK/ERK pathway. Thus, elaborate molecular mechanisms that preserve PI3K/AKT signaling upon bFGF stimulation may exist in hPSCs. Protein arginine methyltransferase 8 (PRMT8) was expressed and then its level gradually decreased during spontaneous differentiation of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs). PRMT8 loss- or gain-of-function studies demonstrated that PRMT8 contributed to longer maintenance of hESC pluripotency, even under bFGF-deprived conditions. Direct interaction of membrane-localized PRMT8 with p85, a regulatory subunit of PI3K, was associated with accumulation of phosphoinositol 3-phosphate and consequently high AKT activity. Furthermore, the SOX2 induction, which was controlled by the PRMT8/PI3K/AKT axis, was linked to mesodermal lineage differentiation. Thus, we propose that PRMT8 in hESCs plays an important role not only in maintaining pluripotency but also in controlling mesodermal differentiation through bFGF signaling toward the PI3K/AKT/SOX2 axis. Stem Cells 2017;35:2037-2049. © 2017 AlphaMed Press.

Generation of corneal epithelial cells from induced pluripotent stem cells derived from human dermal fibroblast and corneal limbal epithelium.

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Ryuhei Hayashi

Full Text Available Induced pluripotent stem (iPS cells can be established from somatic cells. However, there is currently no established strategy to generate corneal epithelial cells from iPS cells. In this study, we investigated whether corneal epithelial cells could be differentiated from iPS cells. We tested 2 distinct sources: human adult dermal fibroblast (HDF-derived iPS cells (253G1 and human adult corneal limbal epithelial cells (HLEC-derived iPS cells (L1B41. We first established iPS cells from HLEC by introducing the Yamanaka 4 factors. Corneal epithelial cells were successfully induced from the iPS cells by the stromal cell-derived inducing activity (SDIA differentiation method, as Pax6(+/K12(+ corneal epithelial colonies were observed after prolonged differentiation culture (12 weeks or later in both the L1B41 and 253G1 iPS cells following retinal pigment epithelial and lens cell induction. Interestingly, the corneal epithelial differentiation efficiency was higher in L1B41 than in 253G1. DNA methylation analysis revealed that a small proportion of differentially methylated regions still existed between L1B41 and 253G1 iPS cells even though no significant difference in methylation status was detected in the specific corneal epithelium-related genes such as K12, K3, and Pax6. The present study is the first to demonstrate a strategy for corneal epithelial cell differentiation from human iPS cells, and further suggests that the epigenomic status is associated with the propensity of iPS cells to differentiate into corneal epithelial cells.

Effects of mechanical stimulation on the reprogramming of somatic cells into human-induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Kim, Young Mi; Kang, Yun Gyeong; Park, So Hee; Han, Myung-Kwan; Kim, Jae Ho; Shin, Ji Won; Shin, Jung-Woog

2017-06-08

Mechanical stimuli play important roles in the proliferation and differentiation of adult stem cells. However, few studies on their effects on induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have been published. Human dermal fibroblasts were seeded onto flexible membrane-bottom plates, and infected with retrovirus expressing the four reprogramming factors OCT4, SOX2, KLF, and c-MYC (OSKM). The cells were subjected to equiaxial stretching (3% or 8% for 2, 4, or 7 days) and seeded on feeder cells (STO). The reprogramming into iPSCs was evaluated by the expression of pluripotent markers, in vitro differentiation into three germ layers, and teratoma formation. Equiaxial stretching enhanced reprogramming efficiency without affecting the viral transduction rate. iPSCs induced by transduction of four reprogramming factors and application of equiaxial stretching had characteristics typical of iPSCs in terms of pluripotency and differentiation potentials. This is the first study to show that mechanical stimuli can increase reprogramming efficiency. However, it did not enhance the infection rate, indicating that mechanical stimuli, defined as stretching in this study, have positive effects on reprogramming rather than on infection. Additional studies should evaluate the mechanism underlying the modulation of reprogramming of somatic cells into iPSCs.

A Roadmap for Human Liver Differentiation from Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Lay Teng Ang

2018-02-01

Full Text Available How are closely related lineages, including liver, pancreas, and intestines, diversified from a common endodermal origin? Here, we apply principles learned from developmental biology to rapidly reconstitute liver progenitors from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs. Mapping the formation of multiple endodermal lineages revealed how alternate endodermal fates (e.g., pancreas and intestines are restricted during liver commitment. Human liver fate was encoded by combinations of inductive and repressive extracellular signals at different doses. However, these signaling combinations were temporally re-interpreted: cellular competence to respond to retinoid, WNT, TGF-β, and other signals sharply changed within 24 hr. Consequently, temporally dynamic manipulation of extracellular signals was imperative to suppress the production of unwanted cell fates across six consecutive developmental junctures. This efficiently generated 94.1% ± 7.35% TBX3+HNF4A+ human liver bud progenitors and 81.5% ± 3.2% FAH+ hepatocyte-like cells by days 6 and 18 of hPSC differentiation, respectively; the latter improved short-term survival in the Fah−/−Rag2−/−Il2rg−/− mouse model of liver failure.

Neural Conversion and Patterning of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells: A Developmental Perspective.

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Zirra, Alexandra; Wiethoff, Sarah; Patani, Rickie

2016-01-01

Since the reprogramming of adult human terminally differentiated somatic cells into induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) became a reality in 2007, only eight years have passed. Yet over this relatively short period, myriad experiments have revolutionized previous stem cell dogmata. The tremendous promise of hiPSC technology for regenerative medicine has fuelled rising expectations from both the public and scientific communities alike. In order to effectively harness hiPSCs to uncover fundamental mechanisms of disease, it is imperative to first understand the developmental neurobiology underpinning their lineage restriction choices in order to predictably manipulate cell fate to desired derivatives. Significant progress in developmental biology provides an invaluable resource for rationalising directed differentiation of hiPSCs to cellular derivatives of the nervous system. In this paper we begin by reviewing core developmental concepts underlying neural induction in order to provide context for how such insights have guided reductionist in vitro models of neural conversion from hiPSCs. We then discuss early factors relevant in neural patterning, again drawing upon crucial knowledge gained from developmental neurobiological studies. We conclude by discussing open questions relating to these concepts and how their resolution might serve to strengthen the promise of pluripotent stem cells in regenerative medicine.

Neural Conversion and Patterning of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells: A Developmental Perspective

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Alexandra Zirra

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Since the reprogramming of adult human terminally differentiated somatic cells into induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs became a reality in 2007, only eight years have passed. Yet over this relatively short period, myriad experiments have revolutionized previous stem cell dogmata. The tremendous promise of hiPSC technology for regenerative medicine has fuelled rising expectations from both the public and scientific communities alike. In order to effectively harness hiPSCs to uncover fundamental mechanisms of disease, it is imperative to first understand the developmental neurobiology underpinning their lineage restriction choices in order to predictably manipulate cell fate to desired derivatives. Significant progress in developmental biology provides an invaluable resource for rationalising directed differentiation of hiPSCs to cellular derivatives of the nervous system. In this paper we begin by reviewing core developmental concepts underlying neural induction in order to provide context for how such insights have guided reductionist in vitro models of neural conversion from hiPSCs. We then discuss early factors relevant in neural patterning, again drawing upon crucial knowledge gained from developmental neurobiological studies. We conclude by discussing open questions relating to these concepts and how their resolution might serve to strengthen the promise of pluripotent stem cells in regenerative medicine.

CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing in human pluripotent stem cells: Harnessing human genetics in a dish.

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González, Federico

2016-07-01

Because of their extraordinary differentiation potential, human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) can differentiate into virtually any cell type of the human body, providing a powerful platform not only for generating relevant cell types useful for cell replacement therapies, but also for modeling human development and disease. Expanding this potential, structures resembling human organs, termed organoids, have been recently obtained from hPSCs through tissue engineering. Organoids exhibit multiple cell types self-organizing into structures recapitulating in part the physiology and the cellular interactions observed in the organ in vivo, offering unprecedented opportunities for human disease modeling. To fulfill this promise, tissue engineering in hPSCs needs to be supported by robust and scalable genome editing technologies. With the advent of the CRISPR/Cas9 technology, manipulating the genome of hPSCs has now become an easy task, allowing modifying their genome with superior precision, speed, and throughput. Here we review current and potential applications of the CRISPR/Cas9 technology in hPSCs and how they contribute to establish hPSCs as a model of choice for studying human genetics. Developmental Dynamics 245:788-806, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Efficient and rapid derivation of primitive neural stem cells and generation of brain subtype neurons from human pluripotent stem cells.

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Yan, Yiping; Shin, Soojung; Jha, Balendu Shekhar; Liu, Qiuyue; Sheng, Jianting; Li, Fuhai; Zhan, Ming; Davis, Janine; Bharti, Kapil; Zeng, Xianmin; Rao, Mahendra; Malik, Nasir; Vemuri, Mohan C

2013-11-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), including human embryonic stem cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells, are unique cell sources for disease modeling, drug discovery screens, and cell therapy applications. The first step in producing neural lineages from hPSCs is the generation of neural stem cells (NSCs). Current methods of NSC derivation involve the time-consuming, labor-intensive steps of an embryoid body generation or coculture with stromal cell lines that result in low-efficiency derivation of NSCs. In this study, we report a highly efficient serum-free pluripotent stem cell neural induction medium that can induce hPSCs into primitive NSCs (pNSCs) in 7 days, obviating the need for time-consuming, laborious embryoid body generation or rosette picking. The pNSCs expressed the neural stem cell markers Pax6, Sox1, Sox2, and Nestin; were negative for Oct4; could be expanded for multiple passages; and could be differentiated into neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes, in addition to the brain region-specific neuronal subtypes GABAergic, dopaminergic, and motor neurons. Global gene expression of the transcripts of pNSCs was comparable to that of rosette-derived and human fetal-derived NSCs. This work demonstrates an efficient method to generate expandable pNSCs, which can be further differentiated into central nervous system neurons and glia with temporal, spatial, and positional cues of brain regional heterogeneity. This method of pNSC derivation sets the stage for the scalable production of clinically relevant neural cells for cell therapy applications in good manufacturing practice conditions.

CRISPR Genome Engineering for Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Chaterji, Somali; Ahn, Eun Hyun; Kim, Deok-Ho

2017-01-01

The emergence of targeted and efficient genome editing technologies, such as repurposed bacterial programmable nucleases (e.g., CRISPR-Cas systems), has abetted the development of cell engineering approaches. Lessons learned from the development of RNA-interference (RNA-i) therapies can spur the translation of genome editing, such as those enabling the translation of human pluripotent stem cell engineering. In this review, we discuss the opportunities and the challenges of repurposing bacterial nucleases for genome editing, while appreciating their roles, primarily at the epigenomic granularity. First, we discuss the evolution of high-precision, genome editing technologies, highlighting CRISPR-Cas9. They exist in the form of programmable nucleases, engineered with sequence-specific localizing domains, and with the ability to revolutionize human stem cell technologies through precision targeting with greater on-target activities. Next, we highlight the major challenges that need to be met prior to bench-to-bedside translation, often learning from the path-to-clinic of complementary technologies, such as RNA-i. Finally, we suggest potential bioinformatics developments and CRISPR delivery vehicles that can be deployed to circumvent some of the challenges confronting genome editing technologies en route to the clinic.

Hepatic differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells in miniaturized format suitable for high-throughput screen

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Arnaud Carpentier

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The establishment of protocols to differentiate human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs including embryonic (ESC and induced pluripotent (iPSC stem cells into functional hepatocyte-like cells (HLCs creates new opportunities to study liver metabolism, genetic diseases and infection of hepatotropic viruses (hepatitis B and C viruses in the context of specific genetic background. While supporting efficient differentiation to HLCs, the published protocols are limited in terms of differentiation into fully mature hepatocytes and in a smaller-well format. This limitation handicaps the application of these cells to high-throughput assays. Here we describe a protocol allowing efficient and consistent hepatic differentiation of hPSCs in 384-well plates into functional hepatocyte-like cells, which remain differentiated for more than 3 weeks. This protocol affords the unique opportunity to miniaturize the hPSC-based differentiation technology and facilitates screening for molecules in modulating liver differentiation, metabolism, genetic network, and response to infection or other external stimuli.

Disease modeling and phenotypic drug screening for diabetic cardiomyopathy using human induced pluripotent stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Drawnel, Faye M; Boccardo, Stefano; Prummer, Michael; Delobel, Frédéric; Graff, Alexandra; Weber, Michael; Gérard, Régine; Badi, Laura; Kam-Thong, Tony; Bu, Lei; Jiang, Xin; Hoflack, Jean-Christophe; Kiialainen, Anna; Jeworutzki, Elena; Aoyama, Natsuyo; Carlson, Coby; Burcin, Mark; Gromo, Gianni; Boehringer, Markus; Stahlberg, Henning; Hall, Benjamin J; Magnone, Maria Chiara; Kolaja, Kyle; Chien, Kenneth R; Bailly, Jacques; Iacone, Roberto

2014-11-06

Diabetic cardiomyopathy is a complication of type 2 diabetes, with known contributions of lifestyle and genetics. We develop environmentally and genetically driven in vitro models of the condition using human-induced-pluripotent-stem-cell-derived cardiomyocytes. First, we mimic diabetic clinical chemistry to induce a phenotypic surrogate of diabetic cardiomyopathy, observing structural and functional disarray. Next, we consider genetic effects by deriving cardiomyocytes from two diabetic patients with variable disease progression. The cardiomyopathic phenotype is recapitulated in the patient-specific cells basally, with a severity dependent on their original clinical status. These models are incorporated into successive levels of a screening platform, identifying drugs that preserve cardiomyocyte phenotype in vitro during diabetic stress. In this work, we present a patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) model of a complex metabolic condition, showing the power of this technique for discovery and testing of therapeutic strategies for a disease with ever-increasing clinical significance. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Generation of a TALEN-mediated, p63 knock-in in human induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Kobayashi, Yuki; Hayashi, Ryuhei; Quantock, Andrew J; Nishida, Kohji

2017-12-01

The expression of p63 in surface ectodermal cells during development of the cornea, skin, oral mucosa and olfactory placodes is integral to the process of cellular self-renewal and the maintenance of the epithelial stem cell status. Here, we used TALEN technology to generate a p63 knock-in (KI) human induced pluripotent stem (hiPS) cell line in which p63 expression can be visualized via enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) expression. The KI-hiPS cells maintained pluripotency and expressed the stem cell marker gene, ΔNp63α. They were also able to successfully differentiate into functional corneal epithelial cells as assessed by p63 expression in reconstructed corneal epithelium. This approach enables the tracing of p63-expressing cell lineages throughout epithelial development, and represents a promising application in the field of stem cell research. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Disease Modeling and Phenotypic Drug Screening for Diabetic Cardiomyopathy using Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Faye M. Drawnel

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Diabetic cardiomyopathy is a complication of type 2 diabetes, with known contributions of lifestyle and genetics. We develop environmentally and genetically driven in vitro models of the condition using human-induced-pluripotent-stem-cell-derived cardiomyocytes. First, we mimic diabetic clinical chemistry to induce a phenotypic surrogate of diabetic cardiomyopathy, observing structural and functional disarray. Next, we consider genetic effects by deriving cardiomyocytes from two diabetic patients with variable disease progression. The cardiomyopathic phenotype is recapitulated in the patient-specific cells basally, with a severity dependent on their original clinical status. These models are incorporated into successive levels of a screening platform, identifying drugs that preserve cardiomyocyte phenotype in vitro during diabetic stress. In this work, we present a patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC model of a complex metabolic condition, showing the power of this technique for discovery and testing of therapeutic strategies for a disease with ever-increasing clinical significance.

Non-integrating episomal plasmid-based reprogramming of human amniotic fluid stem cells into induced pluripotent stem cells in chemically defined conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Slamecka, Jaroslav; Salimova, Lilia; McClellan, Steven; van Kelle, Mathieu; Kehl, Debora; Laurini, Javier; Cinelli, Paolo; Owen, Laurie; Hoerstrup, Simon P; Weber, Benedikt

2016-01-01

Amniotic fluid stem cells (AFSC) represent an attractive potential cell source for fetal and pediatric cell-based therapies. However, upgrading them to pluripotency confers refractoriness toward senescence, higher proliferation rate and unlimited differentiation potential. AFSC were observed to rapidly and efficiently reacquire pluripotency which together with their easy recovery makes them an attractive cell source for reprogramming. The reprogramming process as well as the resulting iPSC epigenome could potentially benefit from the unspecialized nature of AFSC. iPSC derived from AFSC also have potential in disease modeling, such as Down syndrome or β-thalassemia. Previous experiments involving AFSC reprogramming have largely relied on integrative vector transgene delivery and undefined serum-containing, feeder-dependent culture. Here, we describe non-integrative oriP/EBNA-1 episomal plasmid-based reprogramming of AFSC into iPSC and culture in fully chemically defined xeno-free conditions represented by vitronectin coating and E8 medium, a system that we found uniquely suited for this purpose. The derived AF-iPSC lines uniformly expressed a set of pluripotency markers Oct3/4, Nanog, Sox2, SSEA-1, SSEA-4, TRA-1-60, TRA-1-81 in a pattern typical for human primed PSC. Additionally, the cells formed teratomas, and were deemed pluripotent by PluriTest, a global expression microarray-based in-silico pluripotency assay. However, we found that the PluriTest scores were borderline, indicating a unique pluripotent signature in the defined condition. In the light of potential future clinical translation of iPSC technology, non-integrating reprogramming and chemically defined culture are more acceptable.

Pluripotent stem cells and reprogrammed cells in farm animals.

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Nowak-Imialek, Monika; Kues, Wilfried; Carnwath, Joseph W; Niemann, Heiner

2011-08-01

Pluripotent cells are unique because of their ability to differentiate into the cell lineages forming the entire organism. True pluripotent stem cells with germ line contribution have been reported for mice and rats. Human pluripotent cells share numerous features of pluripotentiality, but confirmation of their in vivo capacity for germ line contribution is impossible due to ethical and legal restrictions. Progress toward derivation of embryonic stem cells from domestic species has been made, but the derived cells were not able to produce germ line chimeras and thus are termed embryonic stem-like cells. However, domestic animals, in particular the domestic pig (Sus scrofa), are excellent large animals models, in which the clinical potential of stem cell therapies can be studied. Reprogramming technologies for somatic cells, including somatic cell nuclear transfer, cell fusion, in vitro culture in the presence of cell extracts, in vitro conversion of adult unipotent spermatogonial stem cells into germ line derived pluripotent stem cells, and transduction with reprogramming factors have been developed with the goal of obtaining pluripotent, germ line competent stem cells from domestic animals. This review summarizes the present state of the art in the derivation and maintenance of pluripotent stem cells in domestic animals.

Methylation and Transcripts Expression at the Imprinted GNAS Locus in Human Embryonic and Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells and Their Derivatives

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Virginie Grybek

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Data from the literature indicate that genomic imprint marks are disturbed in human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs. GNAS is an imprinted locus that produces one biallelic (Gsα and four monoallelic (NESP55, GNAS-AS1, XLsα, and A/B transcripts due to differential methylation of their promoters (DMR. To document imprinting at the GNAS locus in PSCs, we studied GNAS locus DMR methylation and transcript (NESP55, XLsα, and A/B expression in human embryonic stem cells (hESCs and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs derived from two human fibroblasts and their progenies. Results showed that (1 methylation at the GNAS locus DMRs is DMR and cell line specific, (2 changes in allelic transcript expression can be independent of a change in allele-specific DNA methylation, and (3 interestingly, methylation at A/B DMR is correlated with A/B transcript expression. These results indicate that these models are valuable to study the mechanisms controlling GNAS methylation, factors involved in transcript expression, and possibly mechanisms involved in the pathophysiology of pseudohypoparathyroidism type 1B.

NRF2 Orchestrates the Metabolic Shift during Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Reprogramming

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Kate E. Hawkins

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The potential of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs in disease modeling and regenerative medicine is vast, but current methodologies remain inefficient. Understanding the cellular mechanisms underlying iPSC reprogramming, such as the metabolic shift from oxidative to glycolytic energy production, is key to improving its efficiency. We have developed a lentiviral reporter system to assay longitudinal changes in cell signaling and transcription factor activity in living cells throughout iPSC reprogramming of human dermal fibroblasts. We reveal early NF-κB, AP-1, and NRF2 transcription factor activation prior to a temporal peak in hypoxia inducible factor α (HIFα activity. Mechanistically, we show that an early burst in oxidative phosphorylation and elevated reactive oxygen species generation mediates increased NRF2 activity, which in turn initiates the HIFα-mediated glycolytic shift and may modulate glucose redistribution to the pentose phosphate pathway. Critically, inhibition of NRF2 by KEAP1 overexpression compromises metabolic reprogramming and results in reduced efficiency of iPSC colony formation.

Self-organized amniogenesis by human pluripotent stem cells in a biomimetic implantation-like niche

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Shao, Yue; Taniguchi, Kenichiro; Gurdziel, Katherine; Townshend, Ryan F.; Xue, Xufeng; Yong, Koh Meng Aw; Sang, Jianming; Spence, Jason R.; Gumucio, Deborah L.; Fu, Jianping

2017-04-01

Amniogenesis--the development of amnion--is a critical developmental milestone for early human embryogenesis and successful pregnancy. However, human amniogenesis is poorly understood due to limited accessibility to peri-implantation embryos and a lack of in vitro models. Here we report an efficient biomaterial system to generate human amnion-like tissue in vitro through self-organized development of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) in a bioengineered niche mimicking the in vivo implantation environment. We show that biophysical niche factors act as a switch to toggle hPSC self-renewal versus amniogenesis under self-renewal-permissive biochemical conditions. We identify a unique molecular signature of hPSC-derived amnion-like cells and show that endogenously activated BMP-SMAD signalling is required for the amnion-like tissue development by hPSCs. This study unveils the self-organizing and mechanosensitive nature of human amniogenesis and establishes the first hPSC-based model for investigating peri-implantation human amnion development, thereby helping advance human embryology and reproductive medicine.

Characterization of Phenotypic and Transcriptional Differences in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells under 2D and 3D Culture Conditions.

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Kamei, Ken-Ichiro; Koyama, Yoshie; Tokunaga, Yumie; Mashimo, Yasumasa; Yoshioka, Momoko; Fockenberg, Christopher; Mosbergen, Rowland; Korn, Othmar; Wells, Christine; Chen, Yong

2016-11-01

Human pluripotent stem cells hold great promise for applications in drug discovery and regenerative medicine. Microfluidic technology is a promising approach for creating artificial microenvironments; however, although a proper 3D microenvironment is required to achieve robust control of cellular phenotypes, most current microfluidic devices provide only 2D cell culture and do not allow tuning of physical and chemical environmental cues simultaneously. Here, the authors report a 3D cellular microenvironment plate (3D-CEP), which consists of a microfluidic device filled with thermoresponsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-β-poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogel (HG), which enables systematic tuning of both chemical and physical environmental cues as well as in situ cell monitoring. The authors show that H9 human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and 253G1 human induced pluripotent stem cells in the HG/3D-CEP system maintain their pluripotent marker expression under HG/3D-CEP self-renewing conditions. Additionally, global gene expression analyses are used to elucidate small variations among different test environments. Interestingly, the authors find that treatment of H9 hESCs under HG/3D-CEP self-renewing conditions results in initiation of entry into the neural differentiation process by induction of PAX3 and OTX1 expression. The authors believe that this HG/3D-CEP system will serve as a versatile platform for developing targeted functional cell lines and facilitate advances in drug screening and regenerative medicine. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Characterizing the strand-specific distribution of non-CpG methylation in human pluripotent cells

OpenAIRE

Guo, Weilong; Chung, Wen-Yu; Qian, Minping; Pellegrini, Matteo; Zhang, Michael Q.

2013-01-01

DNA methylation is an important defense and regulatory mechanism. In mammals, most DNA methylation occurs at CpG sites, and asymmetric non-CpG methylation has only been detected at appreciable levels in a few cell types. We are the first to systematically study the strand-specific distribution of non-CpG methylation. With the divide-and-compare strategy, we show that CHG and CHH methylation are not intrinsically different in human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells...

Heterozygous and homozygous JAK2(V617F states modeled by induced pluripotent stem cells from myeloproliferative neoplasm patients.

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Joseph Saliba

Full Text Available JAK2(V617F is the predominant mutation in myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN. Modeling MPN in a human context might be helpful for the screening of molecules targeting JAK2 and its intracellular signaling. We describe here the derivation of induced pluripotent stem (iPS cell lines from 2 polycythemia vera patients carrying a heterozygous and a homozygous mutated JAK2(V617F, respectively. In the patient with homozygous JAK2(V617F, additional ASXL1 mutation and chromosome 20 allowed partial delineation of the clonal architecture and assignation of the cellular origin of the derived iPS cell lines. The marked difference in the response to erythropoietin (EPO between homozygous and heterozygous cell lines correlated with the constitutive activation level of signaling pathways. Strikingly, heterozygous iPS cells showed thrombopoietin (TPO-independent formation of megakaryocytic colonies, but not EPO-independent erythroid colony formation. JAK2, PI3K and HSP90 inhibitors were able to block spontaneous and EPO-induced growth of erythroid colonies from GPA(+CD41(+ cells derived from iPS cells. Altogether, this study brings the proof of concept that iPS can be used for studying MPN pathogenesis, clonal architecture, and drug efficacy.

Efficient generation of induced pluripotent stem cells from human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells.

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Yulin, X; Lizhen, L; Lifei, Z; Shan, F; Ru, L; Kaimin, H; Huang, H

2012-01-01

Ectopic expression of defined sets of genetic factors can reprogramme somatic cells to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) that closely resemble embryonic stem cells. However, the low reprogramming efficiency is a significant handicap for mechanistic studies and potential clinical application. In this study, we used human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hBMMSCs) as target cells for reprogramming and investigated efficient iPSC generation from hBMMSCs using the compounds of p53 siRNA, valproic acid (VPA) and vitamin C (Vc) with four transcription factors OCT4, SOX2, KLF4, and c-MYC (compound induction system). The synergetic mechanism of the compounds was studied. Our results showed that the compound induction system could efficiently reprogramme hBMMSCs to iPSCs. hBMMSC-derived iPSC populations expressed pluripotent markers and had multi-potential to differentiate into three germ layer-derived cells. p53 siRNA, VPA and Vc had a synergetic effect on cell reprogramming and the combinatorial use of these substances greatly improved the efficiency of iPSC generation by suppressing the expression of p53, decreasing cell apoptosis, up-regulating the expression of the pluripotent gene OCT4 and modifying the cell cycle. Therefore, our study highlights a straightforward method for improving the speed and efficiency of iPSC generation and provides versatile tools for investigating early developmental processes such as haemopoiesis and relevant diseases. In addition, this study provides a paradigm for the combinatorial use of genetic factors and molecules to improve the efficiency of iPSC generation.

Deterministic direct reprogramming of somatic cells to pluripotency.

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Rais, Yoach; Zviran, Asaf; Geula, Shay; Gafni, Ohad; Chomsky, Elad; Viukov, Sergey; Mansour, Abed AlFatah; Caspi, Inbal; Krupalnik, Vladislav; Zerbib, Mirie; Maza, Itay; Mor, Nofar; Baran, Dror; Weinberger, Leehee; Jaitin, Diego A; Lara-Astiaso, David; Blecher-Gonen, Ronnie; Shipony, Zohar; Mukamel, Zohar; Hagai, Tzachi; Gilad, Shlomit; Amann-Zalcenstein, Daniela; Tanay, Amos; Amit, Ido; Novershtern, Noa; Hanna, Jacob H

2013-10-03

Somatic cells can be inefficiently and stochastically reprogrammed into induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells by exogenous expression of Oct4 (also called Pou5f1), Sox2, Klf4 and Myc (hereafter referred to as OSKM). The nature of the predominant rate-limiting barrier(s) preventing the majority of cells to successfully and synchronously reprogram remains to be defined. Here we show that depleting Mbd3, a core member of the Mbd3/NuRD (nucleosome remodelling and deacetylation) repressor complex, together with OSKM transduction and reprogramming in naive pluripotency promoting conditions, result in deterministic and synchronized iPS cell reprogramming (near 100% efficiency within seven days from mouse and human cells). Our findings uncover a dichotomous molecular function for the reprogramming factors, serving to reactivate endogenous pluripotency networks while simultaneously directly recruiting the Mbd3/NuRD repressor complex that potently restrains the reactivation of OSKM downstream target genes. Subsequently, the latter interactions, which are largely depleted during early pre-implantation development in vivo, lead to a stochastic and protracted reprogramming trajectory towards pluripotency in vitro. The deterministic reprogramming approach devised here offers a novel platform for the dissection of molecular dynamics leading to establishing pluripotency at unprecedented flexibility and resolution.

Pluripotent stem cells and their use in hearing loss

OpenAIRE

KEPEKÇİ, AHMET HAMDİ; ÖZTURAN, OKAN ÖZGÜR; KÖKER, MUSTAFA YAVUZ

2016-01-01

Throughout its half a century of development, stem cell research has included two main fields: embryonic stem (ES) cell research and the reprogramming of body somatic cells. In the present review we focused on stem cell reprogramming and its relation with otolaryngology. The human body somatic cells are transformed into pluripotent cells by three basic methods: the somatic nuclear transfer method, the somatic cell fusion method (getting cellular pluripotent capacity in cellular reprogramming)...

Donor cell type can influence the epigenome and differentiation potential of human induced pluripotent stem cells

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Kim, Kitai; Zhao, Rui; Doi, Akiko; Ng, Kitwa; Unternaehrer, Juli; Cahan, Patrick; Hongguang, Huo; Loh, Yuin-Han; Aryee, Martin J.; Lensch, M. William; Li, Hu; Collins, James J.; Feinberg, Andrew P.; Daley, George Q.

2012-01-01

We compared bona-fide human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) derived from umbilical cord blood (CB) and neonatal keratinocytes (K). As a consequence of both incomplete erasure of tissue-specific methylation and aberrant de novo methylation, CB-iPSC and K-iPSC are distinct in genome-wide DNA methylation profiles and differentiation potential. Extended passage of some iPSC clones in culture didn't improve their epigenetic resemblance to ESC, implying that some human iPSC retain a residual “epigenetic memory” of their tissue of origin. PMID:22119740

Engineering the human pluripotent stem cell microenvironment to direct cell fate.

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Hazeltine, Laurie B; Selekman, Joshua A; Palecek, Sean P

2013-11-15

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), including both embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, offer a potential cell source for research, drug screening, and regenerative medicine applications due to their unique ability to self-renew or differentiate to any somatic cell type. Before the full potential of hPSCs can be realized, robust protocols must be developed to direct their fate. Cell fate decisions are based on components of the surrounding microenvironment, including soluble factors, substrate or extracellular matrix, cell-cell interactions, mechanical forces, and 2D or 3D architecture. Depending on their spatio-temporal context, these components can signal hPSCs to either self-renew or differentiate to cell types of the ectoderm, mesoderm, or endoderm. Researchers working at the interface of engineering and biology have identified various factors which can affect hPSC fate, often based on lessons from embryonic development, and they have utilized this information to design in vitro niches which can reproducibly direct hPSC fate. This review highlights culture systems that have been engineered to promote self-renewal or differentiation of hPSCs, with a focus on studies that have elucidated the contributions of specific microenvironmental cues in the context of those culture systems. We propose the use of microsystem technologies for high-throughput screening of spatial-temporal presentation of cues, as this has been demonstrated to be a powerful approach for differentiating hPSCs to desired cell types. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Multiplex High-Throughput Targeted Proteomic Assay To Identify Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Baud, Anna; Wessely, Frank; Mazzacuva, Francesca; McCormick, James; Camuzeaux, Stephane; Heywood, Wendy E; Little, Daniel; Vowles, Jane; Tuefferd, Marianne; Mosaku, Olukunbi; Lako, Majlinda; Armstrong, Lyle; Webber, Caleb; Cader, M Zameel; Peeters, Pieter; Gissen, Paul; Cowley, Sally A; Mills, Kevin

2017-02-21

Induced pluripotent stem cells have great potential as a human model system in regenerative medicine, disease modeling, and drug screening. However, their use in medical research is hampered by laborious reprogramming procedures that yield low numbers of induced pluripotent stem cells. For further applications in research, only the best, competent clones should be used. The standard assays for pluripotency are based on genomic approaches, which take up to 1 week to perform and incur significant cost. Therefore, there is a need for a rapid and cost-effective assay able to distinguish between pluripotent and nonpluripotent cells. Here, we describe a novel multiplexed, high-throughput, and sensitive peptide-based multiple reaction monitoring mass spectrometry assay, allowing for the identification and absolute quantitation of multiple core transcription factors and pluripotency markers. This assay provides simpler and high-throughput classification into either pluripotent or nonpluripotent cells in 7 min analysis while being more cost-effective than conventional genomic tests.

Direct Differentiation of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells into Haploid Spermatogenic Cells

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Charles A. Easley, IV

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs and induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs have been shown to differentiate into primordial germ cells (PGCs but not into spermatogonia, haploid spermatocytes, or spermatids. Here, we show that hESCs and hiPSCs differentiate directly into advanced male germ cell lineages, including postmeiotic, spermatid-like cells, in vitro without genetic manipulation. Furthermore, our procedure mirrors spermatogenesis in vivo by differentiating PSCs into UTF1-, PLZF-, and CDH1-positive spermatogonia-like cells; HIWI- and HILI-positive spermatocyte-like cells; and haploid cells expressing acrosin, transition protein 1, and protamine 1 (proteins that are uniquely found in spermatids and/or sperm. These spermatids show uniparental genomic imprints similar to those of human sperm on two loci: H19 and IGF2. These results demonstrate that male PSCs have the ability to differentiate directly into advanced germ cell lineages and may represent a novel strategy for studying spermatogenesis in vitro.

Image-based quantification and mathematical modeling of spatial heterogeneity in ESC colonies.

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Herberg, Maria; Zerjatke, Thomas; de Back, Walter; Glauche, Ingmar; Roeder, Ingo

2015-06-01

Pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have the potential to differentiate into cells of all three germ layers. This unique property has been extensively studied on the intracellular, transcriptional level. However, ESCs typically form clusters of cells with distinct size and shape, and establish spatial structures that are vital for the maintenance of pluripotency. Even though it is recognized that the cells' arrangement and local interactions play a role in fate decision processes, the relations between transcriptional and spatial patterns have not yet been studied. We present a systems biology approach which combines live-cell imaging, quantitative image analysis, and multiscale, mathematical modeling of ESC growth. In particular, we develop quantitative measures of the morphology and of the spatial clustering of ESCs with different expression levels and apply them to images of both in vitro and in silico cultures. Using the same measures, we are able to compare model scenarios with different assumptions on cell-cell adhesions and intercellular feedback mechanisms directly with experimental data. Applying our methodology to microscopy images of cultured ESCs, we demonstrate that the emerging colonies are highly variable regarding both morphological and spatial fluorescence patterns. Moreover, we can show that most ESC colonies contain only one cluster of cells with high self-renewing capacity. These cells are preferentially located in the interior of a colony structure. The integrated approach combining image analysis with mathematical modeling allows us to reveal potential transcription factor related cellular and intercellular mechanisms behind the emergence of observed patterns that cannot be derived from images directly. © 2015 International Society for Advancement of Cytometry.

Comparative study of human embryonic stem cells (hESC and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC as a treatment for retinal dystrophies

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Marina Riera

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Retinal dystrophies (RD are major causes of familial blindness and are characterized by progressive dysfunction of photoreceptor and/or retinal pigment epithelium (RPE cells. In this study, we aimed to evaluate and compare the therapeutic effects of two pluripotent stem cell (PSC-based therapies. We differentiated RPE from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs or human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs and transplanted them into the subretinal space of the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS rat. Once differentiated, cells from either source of PSC resembled mature RPE in their morphology and gene expression profile. Following transplantation, both hESC- and hiPSC-derived cells maintained the expression of specific RPE markers, lost their proliferative capacity, established tight junctions, and were able to perform phagocytosis of photoreceptor outer segments. Remarkably, grafted areas showed increased numbers of photoreceptor nuclei and outer segment disk membranes. Regardless of the cell source, human transplants protected retina from cell apoptosis, glial stress and accumulation of autofluorescence, and responded better to light stimuli. Altogether, our results show that hESC- and hiPSC-derived cells survived, migrated, integrated, and functioned as RPE in the RCS rat retina, providing preclinical evidence that either PSC source could be of potential benefit for treating RD.

Comparative study of human embryonic stem cells (hESC) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) as a treatment for retinal dystrophies

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Riera, Marina; Fontrodona, Laura; Albert, Silvia; Ramirez, Diana Mora; Seriola, Anna; Salas, Anna; Muñoz, Yolanda; Ramos, David; Villegas-Perez, Maria Paz; Zapata, Miguel Angel; Raya, Angel; Ruberte, Jesus; Veiga, Anna; Garcia-Arumi, Jose

2016-01-01

Retinal dystrophies (RD) are major causes of familial blindness and are characterized by progressive dysfunction of photoreceptor and/or retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells. In this study, we aimed to evaluate and compare the therapeutic effects of two pluripotent stem cell (PSC)-based therapies. We differentiated RPE from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) or human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) and transplanted them into the subretinal space of the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) rat. Once differentiated, cells from either source of PSC resembled mature RPE in their morphology and gene expression profile. Following transplantation, both hESC- and hiPSC-derived cells maintained the expression of specific RPE markers, lost their proliferative capacity, established tight junctions, and were able to perform phagocytosis of photoreceptor outer segments. Remarkably, grafted areas showed increased numbers of photoreceptor nuclei and outer segment disk membranes. Regardless of the cell source, human transplants protected retina from cell apoptosis, glial stress and accumulation of autofluorescence, and responded better to light stimuli. Altogether, our results show that hESC- and hiPSC-derived cells survived, migrated, integrated, and functioned as RPE in the RCS rat retina, providing preclinical evidence that either PSC source could be of potential benefit for treating RD. PMID:27006969

Generation of Functional Cardiomyocytes from Efficiently Generated Human iPSCs and a Novel Method of Measuring Contractility.

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Sheeja Rajasingh

Full Text Available Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs derived cardiomyocytes (iCMCs would provide an unlimited cell source for regenerative medicine and drug discoveries. The objective of our study is to generate functional cardiomyocytes from human iPSCs and to develop a novel method of measuring contractility of CMCs. In a series of experiments, adult human skin fibroblasts (HSF and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs were treated with a combination of pluripotent gene DNA and mRNA under specific conditions. The iPSC colonies were identified and differentiated into various cell lineages, including CMCs. The contractile activity of CMCs was measured by a novel method of frame-by-frame cross correlation (particle image velocimetry-PIV analysis. Our treatment regimen transformed 4% of HSFs into iPSC colonies at passage 0, a significantly improved efficiency compared with use of either DNA or mRNA alone. The iPSCs were capable of differentiating both in vitro and in vivo into endodermal, ectodermal and mesodermal cells, including CMCs with >88% of cells being positive for troponin T (CTT and Gata4 by flow cytometry. We report a highly efficient combination of DNA and mRNA to generate iPSCs and functional iCMCs from adult human cells. We also report a novel approach to measure contractility of iCMCs.

Generation of Functional Cardiomyocytes from Efficiently Generated Human iPSCs and a Novel Method of Measuring Contractility.

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Rajasingh, Sheeja; Thangavel, Jayakumar; Czirok, Andras; Samanta, Saheli; Roby, Katherine F; Dawn, Buddhadeb; Rajasingh, Johnson

2015-01-01

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived cardiomyocytes (iCMCs) would provide an unlimited cell source for regenerative medicine and drug discoveries. The objective of our study is to generate functional cardiomyocytes from human iPSCs and to develop a novel method of measuring contractility of CMCs. In a series of experiments, adult human skin fibroblasts (HSF) and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were treated with a combination of pluripotent gene DNA and mRNA under specific conditions. The iPSC colonies were identified and differentiated into various cell lineages, including CMCs. The contractile activity of CMCs was measured by a novel method of frame-by-frame cross correlation (particle image velocimetry-PIV) analysis. Our treatment regimen transformed 4% of HSFs into iPSC colonies at passage 0, a significantly improved efficiency compared with use of either DNA or mRNA alone. The iPSCs were capable of differentiating both in vitro and in vivo into endodermal, ectodermal and mesodermal cells, including CMCs with >88% of cells being positive for troponin T (CTT) and Gata4 by flow cytometry. We report a highly efficient combination of DNA and mRNA to generate iPSCs and functional iCMCs from adult human cells. We also report a novel approach to measure contractility of iCMCs.

Human finger-prick induced pluripotent stem cells facilitate the development of stem cell banking.

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Tan, Hong-Kee; Toh, Cheng-Xu Delon; Ma, Dongrui; Yang, Binxia; Liu, Tong Ming; Lu, Jun; Wong, Chee-Wai; Tan, Tze-Kai; Li, Hu; Syn, Christopher; Tan, Eng-Lee; Lim, Bing; Lim, Yoon-Pin; Cook, Stuart A; Loh, Yuin-Han

2014-05-01

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived from somatic cells of patients can be a good model for studying human diseases and for future therapeutic regenerative medicine. Current initiatives to establish human iPSC (hiPSC) banking face challenges in recruiting large numbers of donors with diverse diseased, genetic, and phenotypic representations. In this study, we describe the efficient derivation of transgene-free hiPSCs from human finger-prick blood. Finger-prick sample collection can be performed on a "do-it-yourself" basis by donors and sent to the hiPSC facility for reprogramming. We show that single-drop volumes of finger-prick samples are sufficient for performing cellular reprogramming, DNA sequencing, and blood serotyping in parallel. Our novel strategy has the potential to facilitate the development of large-scale hiPSC banking worldwide.

Generation of a human induced pluripotent stem cell line (MUSIi001-A from caesarean section scar fibroblasts using Sendai viral vectors

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Methichit Wattanapanitch

2018-03-01

Full Text Available We generated a human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC line from caesarean section scar fibroblasts of a 33-year-old healthy woman using transgene-free Sendai viral vectors under feeder-free condition. The established iPSC line, designated as MUSIi001-A, exhibited a normal karyotype, expressed pluripotent markers, differentiated into cells of three embryonic germ layers. Further analyses showed that the Sendai viral genome was absent at passage 25. The MUSIi001-A line can serve as a control for studying developmental biology and phenotypic comparison with disease-specific iPSCs.

Antioxidant Supplementation Reduces Genomic Aberrations in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Junfeng Ji

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Somatic cells can be reprogrammed to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs using oncogenic transcription factors. However, this method leads to genetic aberrations in iPSCs via unknown mechanisms, which may limit their clinical use. Here, we demonstrate that the supplementation of growth media with antioxidants reduces the genome instability of cells transduced with the reprogramming factors. Antioxidant supplementation did not affect transgene expression level or silencing kinetics. Importantly, iPSCs made with antioxidants had significantly fewer de novo copy number variations, but not fewer coding point mutations, than iPSCs made without antioxidants. Our results suggest that the quality and safety of human iPSCs might be enhanced by using antioxidants in the growth media during the generation and maintenance of iPSCs.

Being human: The role of pluripotent stem cells in regenerative medicine and humanizing Alzheimer's disease models.

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Sproul, Andrew A

2015-01-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) have the capacity to revolutionize medicine by allowing the generation of functional cell types such as neurons for cell replacement therapy. However, the more immediate impact of PSCs on treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD) will be through improved human AD model systems for mechanistic studies and therapeutic screening. This review will first briefly discuss different types of PSCs and genome-editing techniques that can be used to modify PSCs for disease modeling or for personalized medicine. This will be followed by a more in depth analysis of current AD iPSC models and a discussion of the need for more complex multicellular models, including cell types such as microglia. It will finish with a discussion on current clinical trials using PSC-derived cells and the long-term potential of such strategies for treating AD. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Porcine induced pluripotent stem cells produce chimeric offspring.

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West, Franklin D; Terlouw, Steve L; Kwon, Dae Jin; Mumaw, Jennifer L; Dhara, Sujoy K; Hasneen, Kowser; Dobrinsky, John R; Stice, Steven L

2010-08-01

Ethical and moral issues rule out the use of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) in chimera studies that would determine the full extent of their reprogrammed state, instead relying on less rigorous assays such as teratoma formation and differentiated cell types. To date, only mouse iPSC lines are known to be truly pluripotent. However, initial mouse iPSC lines failed to form chimeric offspring, but did generate teratomas and differentiated embryoid bodies, and thus these specific iPSC lines were not completely reprogrammed or truly pluripotent. Therefore, there is a need to address whether the reprogramming factors and process used eventually to generate chimeric mice are universal and sufficient to generate reprogrammed iPSC that contribute to chimeric offspring in additional species. Here we show that porcine mesenchymal stem cells transduced with 6 human reprogramming factors (POU5F1, SOX2, NANOG, KLF4, LIN28, and C-MYC) injected into preimplantation-stage embryos contributed to multiple tissue types spanning all 3 germ layers in 8 of 10 fetuses. The chimerism rate was high, 85.3% or 29 of 34 live offspring were chimeras based on skin and tail biopsies harvested from 2- to 5-day-old pigs. The creation of pluripotent porcine iPSCs capable of generating chimeric offspring introduces numerous opportunities to study the facets significantly affecting cell therapies, genetic engineering, and other aspects of stem cell and developmental biology.

Induction of pluripotency by defined factors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Okita, Keisuke; Yamanaka, Shinya

2010-01-01

Somatic cells can be reprogrammed into pluripotent stem cells by introducing a combination of several transcription factors. The induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells from a patient's somatic cells could be useful source of cells for drug discovery and cell transplantation therapies. However, most human iPS cells are made by viral vectors, such as retrovirus and lentivirus, which integrate the reprogramming factors into host genomes and may increase the risk of tumor formation. Studies of the mechanisms underlying the reprogramming and establishment of non-integration methods contribute evidence to resolve the safety concerns associated with iPS cells. On the other hand, patient-specific iPS cells have already been established and used for recapitulating disease pathology.

Generation of Functional Lentoid Bodies From Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Derived From Urinary Cells.

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Fu, Qiuli; Qin, Zhenwei; Jin, Xiuming; Zhang, Lifang; Chen, Zhijian; He, Jiliang; Ji, Junfeng; Yao, Ke

2017-01-01

The pathological mechanisms underlying cataract formation remain largely unknown on account of the lack of appropriate in vitro cellular models. The aim of this study is to develop a stable in vitro system for human lens regeneration using pluripotent stem cells. Isolated human urinary cells were infected with four Yamanaka factors to generate urinary human induced pluripotent stem cells (UiPSCs), which were induced to differentiate into lens progenitor cells and lentoid bodies (LBs). The expression of lens-specific markers was examined by real-time PCR, immunostaining, and Western blotting. The structure and magnifying ability of LBs were investigated using transmission electron microscopy and observing the magnification of the letter "X," respectively. We developed a "fried egg" differentiation method to generate functional LBs from UiPSCs. The UiPSC-derived LBs exhibited crystalline lens-like morphology and a transparent structure and expressed lens-specific markers αA-, αB-, β-, and γ-crystallin and MIP. During LB differentiation, the placodal markers SIX1, EYA1, DLX3, PAX6, and the specific early lens markers SOX1, PROX1, FOXE3, αA-, and αB-crystallin were observed at certain time points. Microscopic examination revealed the presence of lens epithelial cells adjacent to the lens capsule as well as both immature and mature fiber-like cells. Optical analysis further demonstrated the magnifying ability (1.7×) of the LBs generated from UiPSCs. Our study provides the first evidence toward generating functional LBs from UiPSCs, thereby establishing an in vitro system that can be used to study human lens development and cataractogenesis and perhaps even be useful for drug screening.

Eighteen-Year Cryopreservation Does Not Negatively Affect the Pluripotency of Human Embryos: Evidence from Embryonic Stem Cell Derivation

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Rungsiwiwut, Ruttachuk; Numchaisrika, Pranee; Ahnonkitpanit, Vichuda; Isarasena, Nipan; Virutamasen, Pramuan

2012-01-01

Abstract Human embryonic stem (hES) cells are considered to be a potential source for the therapy of human diseases, drug screening, and the study of developmental biology. In the present study, we successfully derived hES cell lines from blastocysts developed from frozen and fresh embryos. Seventeen- to eighteen-year-old frozen embryos were thawed, cultured to the blastocyst stage, and induced to form hES cells using human foreskin fibroblasts. The Chula2.hES cell line and the Chula4.hES and Chula5.hES cell lines were derived from blastocysts developed from frozen and fresh embryos, respectively. The cell lines expressed pluripotent markers, including alkaline phosphatase (AP), Oct3/4, stage-specific embryonic antigen (SSEA)-4, and tumor recognition antigen (TRA)-1-60 and TRA-1-81 as detected with immunocytochemistry. The real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) results showed that the cell lines expressed pluripotent genes, including OCT3/4, SOX2, NANOG, UTF, LIN28, REX1, NODAL, and E-Cadherin. In addition, the telomerase activities of the cell lines were higher than in the fibroblast cells. Moreover, the cell lines differentiated into all three germ layers both in vitro and in vivo. The cell lines had distinct identities, as revealed with DNA fingerprinting, and maintained their normal karyotype after a long-term culture. This study is the first to report the successful derivation of hES cell lines in Thailand and that frozen embryos maintained their pluripotency similar to fresh embryos, as shown by the success of hES cell derivation, even after years of cryopreservation. Therefore, embryos from prolonged cryopreservation could be an alternative source for embryonic stem cell research. PMID:23514952

Glycoconjugates reveal diversity of human neural stem cells (hNSCs) derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs).

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Kandasamy, Majury; Roll, Lars; Langenstroth, Daniel; Brüstle, Oliver; Faissner, Andreas

2017-06-01

Neural stem cells (NSCs) have the ability to self-renew and to differentiate into various cell types of the central nervous system. This potential can be recapitulated by human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) in vitro. The differentiation capacity of hiPSCs is characterized by several stages with distinct morphologies and the expression of various marker molecules. We used the monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) 487 LeX , 5750 LeX and 473HD to analyze the expression pattern of particular carbohydrate motifs as potential markers at six differentiation stages of hiPSCs. Mouse ESCs were used as a comparison. At the pluripotent stage, 487 LeX -, 5750 LeX - and 473HD-related glycans were differently expressed. Later, cells of the three germ layers in embryoid bodies (hEBs) and, even after neuralization of hEBs, subpopulations of cells were labeled with these surface antibodies. At the human rosette-stage of NSCs (hR-NSC), LeX- and 473HD-related epitopes showed antibody-specific expression patterns. We also found evidence that these surface antibodies could be used to distinguish the hR-NSCs from the hSR-NSCs stages. Characterization of hNSCs FGF-2/EGF derived from hSR-NSCs revealed that both LeX antibodies and the 473HD antibody labeled subpopulations of hNSCs FGF-2/EGF . Finally, we identified potential LeX carrier molecules that were spatiotemporally regulated in early and late stages of differentiation. Our study provides new insights into the regulation of glycoconjugates during early human stem cell development. The mAbs 487 LeX , 5750 LeX and 473HD are promising tools for identifying distinct stages during neural differentiation.

Assessment of porcine-induced pluripotent stem cells by in vivo assays

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Secher, Jan Ole Bertelsen; Freude, Karla Kristine; Petkov, Stoyan Gueorguiev

Concerted efforts have been expended in deriving porcine induced pluripotent stem cells (piPSC) which are envisaged to more faithfully mimic human physiology than existing rodent-derived iPSC lines. While initial piPSC lines, first generated in 2009, exhibit the majority of hallmarks displayed by i......, human and murine episomal reprogramming approaches lead to integration of such transgenes. Thirdly, current culturing conditions fail to support the maintenance of either porcine embryonic stem cells (pESC) or piPSC. Lastly, piPSC are unable to reproducibly contribute to chimeric embryos as demonstrated......PSCs derived from other mammalian species, this is not without some caveats. Firstly, all existing piPSC-like cells are afflicted by insufficient activation of endogenous pluripotency genes. Secondly and associated with this, lack of silencing of exogenous pluripotency genes is a general drawback: in contrast...

Direct Induction and Functional Maturation of Forebrain GABAergic Neurons from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Alfred Xuyang Sun

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA-releasing interneurons play an important modulatory role in the cortex and have been implicated in multiple neurological disorders. Patient-derived interneurons could provide a foundation for studying the pathogenesis of these diseases as well as for identifying potential therapeutic targets. Here, we identified a set of genetic factors that could robustly induce human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs into GABAergic neurons (iGNs with high efficiency. We demonstrated that the human iGNs express neurochemical markers and exhibit mature electrophysiological properties within 6–8 weeks. Furthermore, in vitro, iGNs could form functional synapses with other iGNs or with human-induced glutamatergic neurons (iENs. Upon transplantation into immunodeficient mice, human iGNs underwent synaptic maturation and integration into host neural circuits. Taken together, our rapid and highly efficient single-step protocol to generate iGNs may be useful to both mechanistic and translational studies of human interneurons.

Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Mechanobiology: Manipulating the Biophysical Microenvironment for Regenerative Medicine and Tissue Engineering Applications.

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Ireland, Ronald G; Simmons, Craig A

2015-11-01

A stem cell in its microenvironment is subjected to a myriad of soluble chemical cues and mechanical forces that act in concert to orchestrate cell fate. Intuitively, many of these soluble and biophysical factors have been the focus of intense study to successfully influence and direct cell differentiation in vitro. Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have been of considerable interest in these studies due to their great promise for regenerative medicine. Culturing and directing differentiation of hPSCs, however, is currently extremely labor-intensive and lacks the efficiency required to generate large populations of clinical-grade cells. Improved efficiency may come from efforts to understand how the cell biophysical signals can complement biochemical signals to regulate cell pluripotency and direct differentiation. In this concise review, we explore hPSC mechanobiology and how the hPSC biophysical microenvironment can be manipulated to maintain and differentiate hPSCs into functional cell types for regenerative medicine and tissue engineering applications. © 2015 AlphaMed Press.

Derivation of transgene-free human induced pluripotent stem cells from human peripheral T cells in defined culture conditions.

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Yoshikazu Kishino

Full Text Available Recently, induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs were established as promising cell sources for revolutionary regenerative therapies. The initial culture system used for iPSC generation needed fetal calf serum in the culture medium and mouse embryonic fibroblast as a feeder layer, both of which could possibly transfer unknown exogenous antigens and pathogens into the iPSC population. Therefore, the development of culture systems designed to minimize such potential risks has become increasingly vital for future applications of iPSCs for clinical use. On another front, although donor cell types for generating iPSCs are wide-ranging, T cells have attracted attention as unique cell sources for iPSCs generation because T cell-derived iPSCs (TiPSCs have a unique monoclonal T cell receptor genomic rearrangement that enables their differentiation into antigen-specific T cells, which can be applied to novel immunotherapies. In the present study, we generated transgene-free human TiPSCs using a combination of activated human T cells and Sendai virus under defined culture conditions. These TiPSCs expressed pluripotent markers by quantitative PCR and immunostaining, had a normal karyotype, and were capable of differentiating into cells from all three germ layers. This method of TiPSCs generation is more suitable for the therapeutic application of iPSC technology because it lowers the risks associated with the presence of undefined, animal-derived feeder cells and serum. Therefore this work will lead to establishment of safer iPSCs and extended clinical application.

Protocol for the Differentiation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells into Mixed Cultures of Neurons and Glia for Neurotoxicity Testing.

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Pistollato, Francesca; Canovas-Jorda, David; Zagoura, Dimitra; Price, Anna

2017-06-09

Human pluripotent stem cells can differentiate into various cell types that can be applied to human-based in vitro toxicity assays. One major advantage is that the reprogramming of somatic cells to produce human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) avoids the ethical and legislative issues related to the use of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs). HiPSCs can be expanded and efficiently differentiated into different types of neuronal and glial cells, serving as test systems for toxicity testing and, in particular, for the assessment of different pathways involved in neurotoxicity. This work describes a protocol for the differentiation of hiPSCs into mixed cultures of neuronal and glial cells. The signaling pathways that are regulated and/or activated by neuronal differentiation are defined. This information is critical to the application of the cell model to the new toxicity testing paradigm, in which chemicals are assessed based on their ability to perturb biological pathways. As a proof of concept, rotenone, an inhibitor of mitochondrial respiratory complex I, was used to assess the activation of the Nrf2 signaling pathway, a key regulator of the antioxidant-response-element-(ARE)-driven cellular defense mechanism against oxidative stress.

3D printing human induced pluripotent stem cells with novel hydroxypropyl chitin bioink: scalable expansion and uniform aggregation.

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Li, Yang; Jiang, Xulin; Li, Ling; Chen, Zhi-Nan; Gao, Ge; Yao, Rui; Sun, Wei

2018-06-28

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) are more likely to successfully avoid the immunological rejection and ethical problems that are often encountered by human embryonic stem cells in various stem cell studies and applications. To transfer hiPSCs from the laboratory to clinical applications, researchers must obtain sufficient cell numbers. In this study, 3D cell printing was used as a novel method for iPSC scalable expansion. Hydroxypropyl chitin (HPCH), utilized as a new type of bioink, and a set of optimized printing parameters were shown to achieve high cell survival (> 90%) after the printing process and high proliferation efficiency (~ 32.3 folds) during subsequent 10-day culture. After the culture, high levels of pluripotency maintenance were recognized by both qualitative and quantitative detections. Compared with static suspension (SS) culture, hiPSC aggregates formed in 3D printed constructs showed a higher uniformity in size. Using novel dual-fluorescent labelling method, hiPSC aggregates in the constructs were found more inclined to form by in situ proliferation rather than multicellular aggregation. This study revealed unique advantages of non-ionic crosslinking bioink material HPCH, including high gel strength and rapid temperature response in hiPSC printing, and achieved primed state hiPSC printing for the first time. Features achieved in this study, such as high cell yield, high pluripotency maintenance and uniform aggregation provide good foundations for further hiPSC studies on 3D micro-tissue differentiation and drug screening. © 2018 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells from a Bombay individual: Moving towards 'universal-donor' red blood cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seifinejad, Ali; Taei, Adeleh; Totonchi, Mehdi; Vazirinasab, Hamed; Hassani, Seideh Nafiseh; Aghdami, Nasser; Shahbazi, Ebrahim; Yazdi, Reza Salman; Salekdeh, Ghasem Hosseini; Baharvand, Hossein

2010-01-01

Bombay phenotype is one of the rare phenotypes in the ABO blood group system that fails to express ABH antigens on red blood cells. Nonsense or missense mutations in fucosyltransfrase1 (FUT1) and fucosyltransfrase2 (FUT2) genes are known to create this phenotype. This blood group is compatible with all other blood groups as a donor, as it does not express the H antigen on the red blood cells. In this study, we describe the establishment of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from the dermal fibroblasts of a Bombay blood-type individual by the ectopic expression of established transcription factors Klf4, Oct4, Sox2, and c-Myc. Sequence analyses of fibroblasts and iPSCs revealed a nonsense mutation 826C to T (276 Gln to Ter) in the FUT1 gene and a missense mutation 739G to A (247 Gly to Ser) in the FUT2 gene in the Bombay phenotype under study. The established iPSCs resemble human embryonic stem cells in morphology, passaging, surface and pluripotency markers, normal karyotype, gene expression, DNA methylation of critical pluripotency genes, and in-vitro differentiation. The directed differentiation of the iPSCs into hematopoietic lineage cells displayed increased expression of the hematopoietic lineage markers such as CD34, CD133, RUNX1, KDR, α-globulin, and γ-globulin. Such specific stem cells provide an unprecedented opportunity to produce a universal blood group donor, in-vitro, thus enabling cellular replacement therapies, once the safety issue is resolved.

DNA methylation dynamics in human induced pluripotent stem cells over time.

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Koichiro Nishino

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Epigenetic reprogramming is a critical event in the generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs. Here, we determined the DNA methylation profiles of 22 human iPSC lines derived from five different cell types (human endometrium, placental artery endothelium, amnion, fetal lung fibroblast, and menstrual blood cell and five human embryonic stem cell (ESC lines, and we followed the aberrant methylation sites in iPSCs for up to 42 weeks. The iPSCs exhibited distinct epigenetic differences from ESCs, which were caused by aberrant methylation at early passages. Multiple appearances and then disappearances of random aberrant methylation were detected throughout iPSC reprogramming. Continuous passaging of the iPSCs diminished the differences between iPSCs and ESCs, implying that iPSCs lose the characteristics inherited from the parent cells and adapt to very closely resemble ESCs over time. Human iPSCs were gradually reprogrammed through the "convergence" of aberrant hyper-methylation events that continuously appeared in a de novo manner. This iPS reprogramming consisted of stochastic de novo methylation and selection/fixation of methylation in an environment suitable for ESCs. Taken together, random methylation and convergence are driving forces for long-term reprogramming of iPSCs to ESCs.

An Efficient Platform for Astrocyte Differentiation from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Julia TCW

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Growing evidence implicates the importance of glia, particularly astrocytes, in neurological and psychiatric diseases. Here, we describe a rapid and robust method for the differentiation of highly pure populations of replicative astrocytes from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs, via a neural progenitor cell (NPC intermediate. We evaluated this protocol across 42 NPC lines (derived from 30 individuals. Transcriptomic analysis demonstrated that hiPSC-astrocytes from four individuals are highly similar to primary human fetal astrocytes and characteristic of a non-reactive state. hiPSC-astrocytes respond to inflammatory stimulants, display phagocytic capacity, and enhance microglial phagocytosis. hiPSC-astrocytes also possess spontaneous calcium transient activity. Our protocol is a reproducible, straightforward (single medium, and rapid (<30 days method to generate populations of hiPSC-astrocytes that can be used for neuron-astrocyte and microglia-astrocyte co-cultures for the study of neuropsychiatric disorders.

Modeling Niemann Pick type C1 using human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Ordoñez, M Paulina; Steele, John W

2017-02-01

Data generated in Niemann Pick type C1 (NPC1) human embryonic and human induced pluripotent stem cell derived neurons complement on-going studies in animal models and provide the first example, in disease-relevant human cells, of processes that underlie preferential neuronal defects in a NPC1. Our work and that of other investigators in human neurons derived from stem cells highlight the importance of performing rigorous mechanistic studies in relevant cell types to guide drug discovery and therapeutic development, alongside of existing animal models. Through the use of human stem cell-derived models of disease, we can identify and discover or repurpose drugs that revert early events that lead to neuronal failure in NPC1. Together with the study of disease pathogenesis and efficacy of therapies in animal models, these strategies will fulfill the promise of stem cell technology in the development of new treatments for human diseases. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled SI: Exploiting human neurons. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

EZ spheres: a stable and expandable culture system for the generation of pre-rosette multipotent stem cells from human ESCs and iPSCs

OpenAIRE

Ebert, A.; Shelley, B.; Hurley, A.; Onorati, M.; Castiglioni, V.; Patitucci, T.; Svendsen, S.; Mattis, V.; Mcgivern, J.; Schwab, A.; Sareen, D.; Kim, H.; Cattaneo, E.; Svendsen, C.

2013-01-01

We have developed a simple method to generate and expand multipotent, self-renewing pre-rosette neural stem cells from both human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) without utilizing embryoid body formation, manual selection techniques, or complex combinations of small molecules. Human ESC and iPSC colonies were lifted and placed in a neural stem cell medium containing high concentrations of EGF and FGF-2. Cell aggregates (termed EZ spheres) could be...

Derivation of the human induced pluripotent stem cell line MUi017-A from a patient with homozygous Hemoglobin Constant Spring

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Wasinee Wongkummool

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Hemoglobin Constant Spring (HbCS, HBA2: c.427T>C is a common nondeletional α-thalassemia resulting from a nucleotide substitution at the termination codon of the HBA2 gene. Homozygosity for HbCS is characterized with mild anemia, jaundice, and splenomegaly. In this study, the human induced pluripotent stem cell line MUi017-A was successfully generated from peripheral blood CD34+ hematopoietic progenitors of a 52 year old female with homozygous HbCS. The MUi017-A cell line exhibited embryonic stem cell characteristics with consistent expression of specific pluripotency markers and the capability of differentiating into the three germ layers. The cell line may be used for the disease modeling.

Application of human induced pluripotent stem cells to model fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva.

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Barruet, Emilie; Hsiao, Edward C

2018-04-01

Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP) is a genetic condition characterized by massive heterotopic ossification. FOP patients have mutations in the Activin A type I receptor (ACVR1), a bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) receptor. FOP is a progressive and debilitating disease characterized by bone formation flares that often occur after trauma. Since it is often difficult or impossible to obtain large amounts of tissue from human donors due to the risks of inciting more heterotopic bone formation, human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) provide an attractive source for establishing in vitro disease models and for applications in drug screening. hiPSCs have the ability to self-renew, allowing researchers to obtain large amounts of starting material. hiPSCs also have the potential to differentiate into any cell type in the body. In this review, we discuss how the application of hiPSC technology to studying FOP has changed our perspectives on FOP disease pathogenesis. We also consider ongoing challenges and emerging opportunities for the use of human iPSCs in drug discovery and regenerative medicine. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Review of Human Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes for High-Throughput Drug Discovery, Cardiotoxicity Screening and Publication Standards

OpenAIRE

Mordwinkin, Nicholas M.; Burridge, Paul W.; Wu, Joseph C.

2012-01-01

Drug attrition rates have increased in past years, resulting in growing costs for the pharmaceutical industry and consumers. The reasons for this include the lack of in vitro models that correlate with clinical results, and poor preclinical toxicity screening assays. The in vitro production of human cardiac progenitor cells and cardiomyocytes from human pluripotent stem cells provides an amenable source of cells for applications in drug discovery, disease modeling, regenerative medicine, and ...

Immunosuppressive Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Derived from Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Induce Human Regulatory T Cells In Vitro and In Vivo

OpenAIRE

Clémence Roux; Clémence Roux; Clémence Roux; Gaëlle Saviane; Gaëlle Saviane; Jonathan Pini; Jonathan Pini; Nourhène Belaïd; Nourhène Belaïd; Gihen Dhib; Gihen Dhib; Christine Voha; Christine Voha; Christine Voha; Lidia Ibáñez

2018-01-01

Despite mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) are considered as a promising source of cells to modulate immune functions on cells from innate and adaptive immune systems, their clinical use remains restricted (few number, limited in vitro expansion, absence of a full phenotypic characterization, few insights on their in vivo fate). Standardized MSCs derived in vitro from human-induced pluripotent stem (huIPS) cells, remediating part of these issues, are considered as well as a valuable tool for th...

Generation, purification and transplantation of photoreceptors derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Deepak A Lamba

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Inherited and acquired retinal degenerations are frequent causes of visual impairment and photoreceptor cell replacement therapy may restore visual function to these individuals. To provide a source of new retinal neurons for cell based therapies, we developed methods to derive retinal progenitors from human ES cells.In this report we have used a similar method to direct induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS from human fibroblasts to a retinal progenitor fate, competent to generate photoreceptors. We also found we could purify the photoreceptors derived from the iPS cells using fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS after labeling photoreceptors with a lentivirus driving GFP from the IRBP cis-regulatory sequences. Moreover, we found that when we transplanted the FACS purified iPSC derived photoreceptors, they were able to integrate into a normal mouse retina and express photoreceptor markers.This report provides evidence that enriched populations of human photoreceptors can be derived from iPS cells.

Induction of pluripotency by defined factors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Okita, Keisuke, E-mail: okita@cira.kyoto-u.ac.jp [Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan); Yamanaka, Shinya [Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan); Department of Stem Cell Biology, Institute for Frontier Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8507 (Japan); Yamanaka iPS Cell Special Project, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Kawaguchi 332-0012 (Japan); Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease, San Francisco, CA 94158 (United States)

2010-10-01

Somatic cells can be reprogrammed into pluripotent stem cells by introducing a combination of several transcription factors. The induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells from a patient's somatic cells could be useful source of cells for drug discovery and cell transplantation therapies. However, most human iPS cells are made by viral vectors, such as retrovirus and lentivirus, which integrate the reprogramming factors into host genomes and may increase the risk of tumor formation. Studies of the mechanisms underlying the reprogramming and establishment of non-integration methods contribute evidence to resolve the safety concerns associated with iPS cells. On the other hand, patient-specific iPS cells have already been established and used for recapitulating disease pathology.

Human hair follicle pluripotent stem (hfPS) cells promote regeneration of peripheral-nerve injury: an advantageous alternative to ES and iPS cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Amoh, Yasuyuki; Kanoh, Maho; Niiyama, Shiro; Hamada, Yuko; Kawahara, Katsumasa; Sato, Yuichi; Hoffman, Robert M; Katsuoka, Kensei

2009-08-01

The optimal source of stem cells for regenerative medicine is a major question. Embryonic stem (ES) cells have shown promise for pluripotency but have ethical issues and potential to form teratomas. Pluripotent stem cells have been produced from skin cells by either viral-, plasmid- or transposon-mediated gene transfer. These stem cells have been termed induced pluripotent stem cells or iPS cells. iPS cells may also have malignant potential and are inefficiently produced. Embryonic stem cells may not be suited for individualized therapy, since they can undergo immunologic rejection. To address these fundamental problems, our group is developing hair follicle pluripotent stem (hfPS) cells. Our previous studies have shown that mouse hfPS cells can differentiate to neurons, glial cells in vitro, and other cell types, and can promote nerve and spinal cord regeneration in vivo. hfPS cells are located above the hair follicle bulge in what we have termed the hfPS cell area (hfPSA) and are nestin positive and keratin 15 (K-15) negative. Human hfPS cells can also differentiate into neurons, glia, keratinocytes, smooth muscle cells, and melanocytes in vitro. In the present study, human hfPS cells were transplanted in the severed sciatic nerve of the mouse where they differentiated into glial fibrillary-acidic-protein (GFAP)-positive Schwann cells and promoted the recovery of pre-existing axons, leading to nerve generation. The regenerated nerve recovered function and, upon electrical stimulation, contracted the gastrocnemius muscle. The hfPS cells can be readily isolated from the human scalp, thereby providing an accessible, autologous and safe source of stem cells for regenerative medicine that have important advantages over ES or iPS cells. (c) 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

An Efficient Platform for Astrocyte Differentiation from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Tcw, Julia; Wang, Minghui; Pimenova, Anna A; Bowles, Kathryn R; Hartley, Brigham J; Lacin, Emre; Machlovi, Saima I; Abdelaal, Rawan; Karch, Celeste M; Phatnani, Hemali; Slesinger, Paul A; Zhang, Bin; Goate, Alison M; Brennand, Kristen J

2017-08-08

Growing evidence implicates the importance of glia, particularly astrocytes, in neurological and psychiatric diseases. Here, we describe a rapid and robust method for the differentiation of highly pure populations of replicative astrocytes from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), via a neural progenitor cell (NPC) intermediate. We evaluated this protocol across 42 NPC lines (derived from 30 individuals). Transcriptomic analysis demonstrated that hiPSC-astrocytes from four individuals are highly similar to primary human fetal astrocytes and characteristic of a non-reactive state. hiPSC-astrocytes respond to inflammatory stimulants, display phagocytic capacity, and enhance microglial phagocytosis. hiPSC-astrocytes also possess spontaneous calcium transient activity. Our protocol is a reproducible, straightforward (single medium), and rapid (method to generate populations of hiPSC-astrocytes that can be used for neuron-astrocyte and microglia-astrocyte co-cultures for the study of neuropsychiatric disorders. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

[Induced pluripotent stem cells: a new paradigm to study human tissues].

Science.gov (United States)

Sansac, Caroline; Assou, Said; Bouckenheimer, Julien; Lemaître, Jean-Marc; De Vos, John

2016-01-01

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are obtained by reprogramming differentiated cells through forced expression of four embryonic transcription factors. The discovery of this technology, able to transform a differentiated cell into a pluripotent cell, has profoundly shifted the paradigm of the concept of cell identity, since it is now possible to obtain in vitro any cell type from an initial sample of skin or blood cells from a healthy volunteer or patient. Applications of iPSCs are exceedingly large, and comprise the in vitro modeling of normal or pathological tissues, including for massive drug screening. They also open new therapeutic avenues in the field of regenerative medicine. © Société de Biologie, 2016.

Beneficial effect of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural precursors in spinal cord injury repair

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Romanyuk, Nataliya; Amemori, Takashi; Turnovcová, Karolína; Procházka, Pavel; Onteniente, B.; Syková, Eva; Jendelová, Pavla

2015-01-01

Roč. 24, č. 9 (2015), s. 1781-1797 ISSN 0963-6897 R&D Projects: GA MŠk LH12024; GA ČR(CZ) GA13-00939S; GA ČR(CZ) GBP304/12/G069; GA MŠk(CZ) ED1.1.00/02.0109; GA MŠk(CZ) LO1309 Institutional support: RVO:68378041 Keywords : human induced pluripotent stem cells * neural precursors * spinal cord injury Subject RIV: FH - Neurology Impact factor: 3.427, year: 2015

A Newly Defined and Xeno-Free Culture Medium Supports Every-Other-Day Medium Replacement in the Generation and Long-Term Cultivation of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmadian Baghbaderani, Behnam; Tian, Xinghui; Scotty Cadet, Jean; Shah, Kevan; Walde, Amy; Tran, Huan; Kovarcik, Don Paul; Clarke, Diana; Fellner, Thomas

2016-01-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) present an unprecedented opportunity to advance human health by offering an alternative and renewable cell resource for cellular therapeutics and regenerative medicine. The present demand for high quality hPSCs for use in both research and clinical studies underscores the need to develop technologies that will simplify the cultivation process and control variability. Here we describe the development of a robust, defined and xeno-free hPSC medium that supports reliable propagation of hPSCs and generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) from multiple somatic cell types; long-term serial subculturing of hPSCs with every-other-day (EOD) medium replacement; and banking fully characterized hPSCs. The hPSCs cultured in this medium for over 40 passages are genetically stable, retain high expression levels of the pluripotency markers TRA-1-60, TRA-1-81, Oct-3/4 and SSEA-4, and readily differentiate into ectoderm, mesoderm and endoderm. Importantly, the medium plays an integral role in establishing a cGMP-compliant process for the manufacturing of hiPSCs that can be used for generation of clinically relevant cell types for cell replacement therapy applications.

Reverse engineering human neurodegenerative disease using pluripotent stem cell technology.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Ying; Deng, Wenbin

2016-05-01

With the technology of reprogramming somatic cells by introducing defined transcription factors that enables the generation of "induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs)" with pluripotency comparable to that of embryonic stem cells (ESCs), it has become possible to use this technology to produce various cells and tissues that have been difficult to obtain from living bodies. This advancement is bringing forth rapid progress in iPSC-based disease modeling, drug screening, and regenerative medicine. More and more studies have demonstrated that phenotypes of adult-onset neurodegenerative disorders could be rather faithfully recapitulated in iPSC-derived neural cell cultures. Moreover, despite the adult-onset nature of the diseases, pathogenic phenotypes and cellular abnormalities often exist in early developmental stages, providing new "windows of opportunity" for understanding mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative disorders and for discovering new medicines. The cell reprogramming technology enables a reverse engineering approach for modeling the cellular degenerative phenotypes of a wide range of human disorders. An excellent example is the study of the human neurodegenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) using iPSCs. ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by the loss of upper and lower motor neurons (MNs), culminating in muscle wasting and death from respiratory failure. The iPSC approach provides innovative cell culture platforms to serve as ALS patient-derived model systems. Researchers have converted iPSCs derived from ALS patients into MNs and various types of glial cells, all of which are involved in ALS, to study the disease. The iPSC technology could be used to determine the role of specific genetic factors to track down what's wrong in the neurodegenerative disease process in the "disease-in-a-dish" model. Meanwhile, parallel experiments of targeting the same specific genes in human ESCs could also be performed to control

Human T cell colony formation in microculture: analysis of growth requirements and functional activities.

Science.gov (United States)

Gelfand, E W; Lee, J W; Dosch, H M; Price, G B

1981-03-01

A microculture method in methylcellulose has been developed for the study of human T cell colony formation. The technique is simple, reliable, does not require preincubation with lectin and requires small numbers of cells. Colony formation was dependent on the presence of phytohemagglutin-conditioned medium, a T colony precursor cell (TCPC), and a "helper" or accessory T cell. Plating efficiency was increased 10-fold in the presence of irradiated feeder cells. Progenitors of the T colony cells were identified in peripheral blood, tonsil, and spleen but not in thymus or thoracic duct. They were isolated in the E-rosetting, theophylline-resistant, Fc-IgG-negative cell populations. In peripheral blood the frequency of TCPC and accessory cells, the T colony forming unit, was estimated to be 8 X 10(-3). Colony cells proliferated in response to lectins and allogeneic cells. Forty to 80% of the cells were Ia-positive and stimulated both autologous and allogeneic mixed lymphocyte responses. They were incapable of mediating antibody-dependent cytotoxicity. In contrast, they were effective in assays of spontaneous cytotoxicity but only against certain target cells. This method for the analysis of T colony formation should prove valuable in the functional analysis of T cell subsets in immunodeficiency states or the transplant recipient.

IAP-Based Cell Sorting Results in Homogeneous Transplantable Dopaminergic Precursor Cells Derived from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Daniela Lehnen

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC-derived mesencephalic dopaminergic (mesDA neurons can relieve motor deficits in animal models of Parkinson's disease (PD. Clinical translation of differentiation protocols requires standardization of production procedures, and surface-marker-based cell sorting is considered instrumental for reproducible generation of defined cell products. Here, we demonstrate that integrin-associated protein (IAP is a cell surface marker suitable for enrichment of hPSC-derived mesDA progenitor cells. Immunomagnetically sorted IAP+ mesDA progenitors showed increased expression of ventral midbrain floor plate markers, lacked expression of pluripotency markers, and differentiated into mature dopaminergic (DA neurons in vitro. Intrastriatal transplantation of IAP+ cells sorted at day 16 of differentiation in a rat model of PD resulted in functional recovery. Grafts from sorted IAP+ mesDA progenitors were more homogeneous in size and DA neuron density. Thus, we suggest IAP-based sorting for reproducible prospective enrichment of mesDA progenitor cells in clinical cell replacement strategies.

Icaritin enhances mESC self-renewal through upregulating core pluripotency transcription factors mediated by ERα.

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Tsang, Wing Pui; Zhang, Fengjie; He, Qiling; Cai, Waijiao; Huang, Jianhua; Chan, Wai Yee; Shen, Ziyin; Wan, Chao

2017-01-16

Utilization of small molecules in modulation of stem cell self-renewal is a promising approach to expand stem cells for regenerative therapy. Here, we identify Icaritin, a phytoestrogen molecule enhances self-renewal of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). Icaritin increases mESCs proliferation while maintains their self-renewal capacity in vitro and pluripotency in vivo. This coincides with upregulation of key pluripotency transcription factors OCT4, NANOG, KLF4 and SOX2. The enhancement of mESCs self-renewal is characterized by increased population in S-phase of cell cycle, elevation of Cylin E and Cyclin-dependent kinase 2 (CDK2) and downregulation of p21, p27 and p57. PCR array screening reveals that caudal-related homeobox 2 (Cdx2) and Rbl2/p130 are remarkably suppressed in mESCs treated with Icaritin. siRNA knockdown of Cdx2 or Rbl2/p130 upregulates the expression of Cyclin E, OCT4 and SOX2, and subsequently increases cell proliferation and colony forming efficiency of mESCs. We then demonstrate that Icaritin co-localizes with estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) and activates its nuclear translocation in mESCs. The promotive effect of Icaritin on cell cycle and pluripotency regulators are eliminated by siRNA knockdown of ERα in mESCs. The results suggest that Icaritin enhances mESCs self-renewal by regulating cell cycle machinery and core pluripotency transcription factors mediated by ERα.

Trophoblast lineage cells derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Ying; Wang, Kai; Chandramouli, Gadisetti V.R.; Knott, Jason G.; Leach, Richard

2013-01-01

Highlights: •Epithelial-like phenotype of trophoblast lineage cells derived from human iPS cells. •Trophoblast lineage cells derived from human iPS cells exhibit trophoblast function. •Trophoblasts from iPS cells provides a proof-of-concept in regenerative medicine. -- Abstract: Background: During implantation, the blastocyst trophectoderm attaches to the endometrial epithelium and continues to differentiate into all trophoblast subtypes, which are the major components of a placenta. Aberrant trophoblast proliferation and differentiation are associated with placental diseases. However, due to ethical and practical issues, there is almost no available cell or tissue source to study the molecular mechanism of human trophoblast differentiation, which further becomes a barrier to the study of the pathogenesis of trophoblast-associated diseases of pregnancy. In this study, our goal was to generate a proof-of-concept model for deriving trophoblast lineage cells from induced pluripotency stem (iPS) cells from human fibroblasts. In future studies the generation of trophoblast lineage cells from iPS cells established from patient’s placenta will be extremely useful for studying the pathogenesis of individual trophoblast-associated diseases and for drug testing. Methods and results: Combining iPS cell technology with BMP4 induction, we derived trophoblast lineage cells from human iPS cells. The gene expression profile of these trophoblast lineage cells was distinct from fibroblasts and iPS cells. These cells expressed markers of human trophoblasts. Furthermore, when these cells were differentiated they exhibited invasive capacity and placental hormone secretive capacity, suggesting extravillous trophoblasts and syncytiotrophoblasts. Conclusion: Trophoblast lineage cells can be successfully derived from human iPS cells, which provide a proof-of-concept tool to recapitulate pathogenesis of patient placental trophoblasts in vitro

Trophoblast lineage cells derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells

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Chen, Ying, E-mail: ying.chen@hc.msu.edu [Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, Michigan State University, 333 Bostwick NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 (United States); Wang, Kai; Chandramouli, Gadisetti V.R. [Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, Michigan State University, 333 Bostwick NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 (United States); Knott, Jason G. [Developmental Epigenetics Laboratory, Department of Animal Science, Michigan State University (United States); Leach, Richard, E-mail: Richard.leach@hc.msu.edu [Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, Michigan State University, 333 Bostwick NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 (United States); Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health, Spectrum Health Medical Group (United States)

2013-07-12

Highlights: •Epithelial-like phenotype of trophoblast lineage cells derived from human iPS cells. •Trophoblast lineage cells derived from human iPS cells exhibit trophoblast function. •Trophoblasts from iPS cells provides a proof-of-concept in regenerative medicine. -- Abstract: Background: During implantation, the blastocyst trophectoderm attaches to the endometrial epithelium and continues to differentiate into all trophoblast subtypes, which are the major components of a placenta. Aberrant trophoblast proliferation and differentiation are associated with placental diseases. However, due to ethical and practical issues, there is almost no available cell or tissue source to study the molecular mechanism of human trophoblast differentiation, which further becomes a barrier to the study of the pathogenesis of trophoblast-associated diseases of pregnancy. In this study, our goal was to generate a proof-of-concept model for deriving trophoblast lineage cells from induced pluripotency stem (iPS) cells from human fibroblasts. In future studies the generation of trophoblast lineage cells from iPS cells established from patient’s placenta will be extremely useful for studying the pathogenesis of individual trophoblast-associated diseases and for drug testing. Methods and results: Combining iPS cell technology with BMP4 induction, we derived trophoblast lineage cells from human iPS cells. The gene expression profile of these trophoblast lineage cells was distinct from fibroblasts and iPS cells. These cells expressed markers of human trophoblasts. Furthermore, when these cells were differentiated they exhibited invasive capacity and placental hormone secretive capacity, suggesting extravillous trophoblasts and syncytiotrophoblasts. Conclusion: Trophoblast lineage cells can be successfully derived from human iPS cells, which provide a proof-of-concept tool to recapitulate pathogenesis of patient placental trophoblasts in vitro.

Single-cell cloning and expansion of human induced pluripotent stem cells by a microfluidic culture device.

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Matsumura, Taku; Tatsumi, Kazuya; Noda, Yuichiro; Nakanishi, Naoyuki; Okonogi, Atsuhito; Hirano, Kunio; Li, Liu; Osumi, Takashi; Tada, Takashi; Kotera, Hidetoshi

2014-10-10

The microenvironment of cells, which includes basement proteins, shear stress, and extracellular stimuli, should be taken into consideration when examining physiological cell behavior. Although microfluidic devices allow cellular responses to be analyzed with ease at the single-cell level, few have been designed to recover cells. We herein demonstrated that a newly developed microfluidic device helped to improve culture conditions and establish a clonality-validated human pluripotent stem cell line after tracing its growth at the single-cell level. The device will be a helpful tool for capturing various cell types in the human body that have not yet been established in vitro. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Electrical Stimulation Promotes Cardiac Differentiation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Damián Hernández

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Background. Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs are an attractive source of cardiomyocytes for cardiac repair and regeneration. In this study, we aim to determine whether acute electrical stimulation of human iPSCs can promote their differentiation to cardiomyocytes. Methods. Human iPSCs were differentiated to cardiac cells by forming embryoid bodies (EBs for 5 days. EBs were then subjected to brief electrical stimulation and plated down for 14 days. Results. In iPS(Foreskin-2 cell line, brief electrical stimulation at 65 mV/mm or 200 mV/mm for 5 min significantly increased the percentage of beating EBs present by day 14 after plating. Acute electrical stimulation also significantly increased the cardiac gene expression of ACTC1, TNNT2, MYH7, and MYL7. However, the cardiogenic effect of electrical stimulation was not reproducible in another iPS cell line, CERA007c6. Beating EBs from control and electrically stimulated groups expressed various cardiac-specific transcription factors and contractile muscle markers. Beating EBs were also shown to cycle calcium and were responsive to the chronotropic agents, isoproterenol and carbamylcholine, in a concentration-dependent manner. Conclusions. Our results demonstrate that brief electrical stimulation can promote cardiac differentiation of human iPS cells. The cardiogenic effect of brief electrical stimulation is dependent on the cell line used.

Generation of clinical-grade human induced pluripotent stem cells in Xeno-free conditions.

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Wang, Juan; Hao, Jie; Bai, Donghui; Gu, Qi; Han, Weifang; Wang, Lei; Tan, Yuanqing; Li, Xia; Xue, Ke; Han, Pencheng; Liu, Zhengxin; Jia, Yundan; Wu, Jun; Liu, Lei; Wang, Liu; Li, Wei; Liu, Zhonghua; Zhou, Qi

2015-11-12

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) are considered as one of the most promising seed cell sources in regenerative medicine. Now hiPSC-based clinical trials are underway. To ensure clinical safety, cells used in clinical trials or therapies should be generated under GMP conditions, and with Xeno-free culture media to avoid possible side effects like immune rejection that induced by the Xeno reagents. However, up to now there are no reports for hiPSC lines developed completely under GMP conditions using Xeno-free reagents. Clinical-grade human foreskin fibroblast (HFF) cells used as feeder cells and parental cells of the clinical-grade hiPSCs were isolated from human foreskin tissues and cultured in Xeno-free media. Clinical-grade hiPSCs were derived by integration-free Sendai virus-based reprogramming kit in Xeno-free pluriton™ reprogramming medium or X medium. Neural cells and cardiomyocytes differentiation were conducted following a series of spatial and temporal specific signals induction according to the corresponding lineage development signals. Biological safety evaluation of the clinical-grade HFF cells and hiPSCs were conducted following the guidance of the "Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China, Edition 2010, Volume III". We have successfully derived several integration-free clinical-grade hiPSC lines under GMP-controlled conditions and with Xeno-free reagents culture media in line with the current guidance of international and national evaluation criteria. As for the source of hiPSCs and feeder cells, biological safety evaluation of the HFF cells have been strictly reviewed by the National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC). The hiPSC lines are pluripotent and have passed the safety evaluation. Moreover, one of the randomly selected hiPSC lines was capable of differentiating into functional neural cells and cardiomyocytes in Xeno-free culture media. The clinical-grade hiPSC lines therefore could be valuable sources for

Functionalizing Ascl1 with Novel Intracellular Protein Delivery Technology for Promoting Neuronal Differentiation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Robinson, Meghan; Chapani, Parv; Styan, Tara; Vaidyanathan, Ranjani; Willerth, Stephanie Michelle

2016-08-01

Pluripotent stem cells can become any cell type found in the body. Accordingly, one of the major challenges when working with pluripotent stem cells is producing a highly homogenous population of differentiated cells, which can then be used for downstream applications such as cell therapies or drug screening. The transcription factor Ascl1 plays a key role in neural development and previous work has shown that Ascl1 overexpression using viral vectors can reprogram fibroblasts directly into neurons. Here we report on how a recombinant version of the Ascl1 protein functionalized with intracellular protein delivery technology (Ascl1-IPTD) can be used to rapidly differentiate human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) into neurons. We first evaluated a range of Ascl1-IPTD concentrations to determine the most effective amount for generating neurons from hiPSCs cultured in serum free media. Next, we looked at the frequency of Ascl1-IPTD supplementation in the media on differentiation and found that one time supplementation is sufficient enough to trigger the neural differentiation process. Ascl1-IPTD was efficiently taken up by the hiPSCs and enabled rapid differentiation into TUJ1-positive and NeuN-positive populations with neuronal morphology after 8 days. After 12 days of culture, hiPSC-derived neurons produced by Ascl1-IPTD treatment exhibited greater neurite length and higher numbers of branch points compared to neurons derived using a standard neural progenitor differentiation protocol. This work validates Ascl1-IPTD as a powerful tool for engineering neural tissue from pluripotent stem cells.

Genome editing in pluripotent stem cells: research and therapeutic applications

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Deleidi, Michela, E-mail: michela.deleidi@dzne.de [German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Tübingen within the Helmholtz Association, Tübingen (Germany); Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of Tübingen (Germany); Yu, Cong [Department of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo, New York (United States)

2016-05-06

Recent progress in human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC) and genome editing technologies has opened up new avenues for the investigation of human biology in health and disease as well as the development of therapeutic applications. Gene editing approaches with programmable nucleases have been successfully established in hPSCs and applied to study gene function, develop novel animal models and perform genetic and chemical screens. Several studies now show the successful editing of disease-linked alleles in somatic and patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) as well as in animal models. Importantly, initial clinical trials have shown the safety of programmable nucleases for ex vivo somatic gene therapy. In this context, the unlimited proliferation potential and the pluripotent properties of iPSCs may offer advantages for gene targeting approaches. However, many technical and safety issues still need to be addressed before genome-edited iPSCs are translated into the clinical setting. Here, we provide an overview of the available genome editing systems and discuss opportunities and perspectives for their application in basic research and clinical practice, with a particular focus on hPSC based research and gene therapy approaches. Finally, we discuss recent research on human germline genome editing and its social and ethical implications. - Highlights: • Programmable nucleases have proven efficient and specific for genome editing in human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs). • Genome edited hPSCs can be employed to study gene function in health and disease as well as drug and chemical screens. • Genome edited hPSCs hold great promise for ex vivo gene therapy approaches. • Technical and safety issues should be first addressed to advance the clinical use of gene-edited hPSCs.

Genome editing in pluripotent stem cells: research and therapeutic applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Deleidi, Michela; Yu, Cong

2016-01-01

Recent progress in human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC) and genome editing technologies has opened up new avenues for the investigation of human biology in health and disease as well as the development of therapeutic applications. Gene editing approaches with programmable nucleases have been successfully established in hPSCs and applied to study gene function, develop novel animal models and perform genetic and chemical screens. Several studies now show the successful editing of disease-linked alleles in somatic and patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) as well as in animal models. Importantly, initial clinical trials have shown the safety of programmable nucleases for ex vivo somatic gene therapy. In this context, the unlimited proliferation potential and the pluripotent properties of iPSCs may offer advantages for gene targeting approaches. However, many technical and safety issues still need to be addressed before genome-edited iPSCs are translated into the clinical setting. Here, we provide an overview of the available genome editing systems and discuss opportunities and perspectives for their application in basic research and clinical practice, with a particular focus on hPSC based research and gene therapy approaches. Finally, we discuss recent research on human germline genome editing and its social and ethical implications. - Highlights: • Programmable nucleases have proven efficient and specific for genome editing in human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs). • Genome edited hPSCs can be employed to study gene function in health and disease as well as drug and chemical screens. • Genome edited hPSCs hold great promise for ex vivo gene therapy approaches. • Technical and safety issues should be first addressed to advance the clinical use of gene-edited hPSCs.

Superior Red Blood Cell Generation from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells Through a Novel Microcarrier-Based Embryoid Body Platform.

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Sivalingam, Jaichandran; Lam, Alan Tin-Lun; Chen, Hong Yu; Yang, Bin Xia; Chen, Allen Kuan-Liang; Reuveny, Shaul; Loh, Yuin-Han; Oh, Steve Kah-Weng

2016-08-01

In vitro generation of red blood cells (RBCs) from human embryonic stem cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells appears to be a promising alternate approach to circumvent shortages in donor-derived blood supplies for clinical applications. Conventional methods for hematopoietic differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC) rely on embryoid body (EB) formation and/or coculture with xenogeneic cell lines. However, most current methods for hPSC expansion and EB formation are not amenable for scale-up to levels required for large-scale RBC generation. Moreover, differentiation methods that rely on xenogenic cell lines would face obstacles for future clinical translation. In this study, we report the development of a serum-free and chemically defined microcarrier-based suspension culture platform for scalable hPSC expansion and EB formation. Improved survival and better quality EBs generated with the microcarrier-based method resulted in significantly improved mesoderm induction and, when combined with hematopoietic differentiation, resulted in at least a 6-fold improvement in hematopoietic precursor expansion, potentially culminating in a 80-fold improvement in the yield of RBC generation compared to a conventional EB-based differentiation method. In addition, we report efficient terminal maturation and generation of mature enucleated RBCs using a coculture system that comprised primary human mesenchymal stromal cells. The microcarrier-based platform could prove to be an appealing strategy for future scale-up of hPSC culture, EB generation, and large-scale generation of RBCs under defined and xeno-free conditions.

Generation of branching ureteric bud tissues from human pluripotent stem cells.

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Mae, Shin-Ichi; Ryosaka, Makoto; Toyoda, Taro; Matsuse, Kyoko; Oshima, Yoichi; Tsujimoto, Hiraku; Okumura, Shiori; Shibasaki, Aya; Osafune, Kenji

2018-01-01

Recent progress in kidney regeneration research is noteworthy. However, the selective and robust differentiation of the ureteric bud (UB), an embryonic renal progenitor, from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) remains to be established. The present study aimed to establish a robust induction method for branching UB tissue from hPSCs towards the creation of renal disease models. Here, we found that anterior intermediate mesoderm (IM) differentiates from anterior primitive streak, which allowed us to successfully develop an efficient two-dimensional differentiation method of hPSCs into Wolffian duct (WD) cells. We also established a simplified procedure to generate three-dimensional WD epithelial structures that can form branching UB tissues. This system may contribute to hPSC-based regenerative therapies and disease models for intractable disorders arising in the kidney and lower urinary tract. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Differentiation of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells from dissociated monolayer and feeder-free cultured pluripotent stem cells.

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Yamashita, Tomoko; Miyamoto, Yuki; Bando, Yoshio; Ono, Takashi; Kobayashi, Sakurako; Doi, Ayano; Araki, Toshihiro; Kato, Yosuke; Shirakawa, Takayuki; Suzuki, Yutaka; Yamauchi, Junji; Yoshida, Shigetaka; Sato, Naoya

2017-01-01

Oligodendrocytes myelinate axons and form myelin sheaths in the central nervous system. The development of therapies for demyelinating diseases, including multiple sclerosis and leukodystrophies, is a challenge because the pathogenic mechanisms of disease remain poorly understood. Primate pluripotent stem cell-derived oligodendrocytes are expected to help elucidate the molecular pathogenesis of these diseases. Oligodendrocytes have been successfully differentiated from human pluripotent stem cells. However, it is challenging to prepare large amounts of oligodendrocytes over a short amount of time because of manipulation difficulties under conventional primate pluripotent stem cell culture methods. We developed a proprietary dissociated monolayer and feeder-free culture system to handle pluripotent stem cell cultures. Because the dissociated monolayer and feeder-free culture system improves the quality and growth of primate pluripotent stem cells, these cells could potentially be differentiated into any desired functional cells and consistently cultured in large-scale conditions. In the current study, oligodendrocyte progenitor cells and mature oligodendrocytes were generated within three months from monkey embryonic stem cells. The embryonic stem cell-derived oligodendrocytes exhibited in vitro myelinogenic potency with rat dorsal root ganglion neurons. Additionally, the transplanted oligodendrocyte progenitor cells differentiated into myelin basic protein-positive mature oligodendrocytes in the mouse corpus callosum. This preparative method was used for human induced pluripotent stem cells, which were also successfully differentiated into oligodendrocyte progenitor cells and mature oligodendrocytes that were capable of myelinating rat dorsal root ganglion neurons. Moreover, it was possible to freeze, thaw, and successfully re-culture the differentiating cells. These results showed that embryonic stem cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells maintained in a

Modeling Viral Infectious Diseases and Development of Antiviral Therapies Using Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Systems.

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Trevisan, Marta; Sinigaglia, Alessandro; Desole, Giovanna; Berto, Alessandro; Pacenti, Monia; Palù, Giorgio; Barzon, Luisa

2015-07-13

The recent biotechnology breakthrough of cell reprogramming and generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), which has revolutionized the approaches to study the mechanisms of human diseases and to test new drugs, can be exploited to generate patient-specific models for the investigation of host-pathogen interactions and to develop new antimicrobial and antiviral therapies. Applications of iPSC technology to the study of viral infections in humans have included in vitro modeling of viral infections of neural, liver, and cardiac cells; modeling of human genetic susceptibility to severe viral infectious diseases, such as encephalitis and severe influenza; genetic engineering and genome editing of patient-specific iPSC-derived cells to confer antiviral resistance.

Modeling Viral Infectious Diseases and Development of Antiviral Therapies Using Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Systems

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Marta Trevisan

2015-07-01

Full Text Available The recent biotechnology breakthrough of cell reprogramming and generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs, which has revolutionized the approaches to study the mechanisms of human diseases and to test new drugs, can be exploited to generate patient-specific models for the investigation of host–pathogen interactions and to develop new antimicrobial and antiviral therapies. Applications of iPSC technology to the study of viral infections in humans have included in vitro modeling of viral infections of neural, liver, and cardiac cells; modeling of human genetic susceptibility to severe viral infectious diseases, such as encephalitis and severe influenza; genetic engineering and genome editing of patient-specific iPSC-derived cells to confer antiviral resistance.

Biosynthesis of ribosomal RNA in nucleoli regulates pluripotency and differentiation ability of pluripotent stem cells.

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Watanabe-Susaki, Kanako; Takada, Hitomi; Enomoto, Kei; Miwata, Kyoko; Ishimine, Hisako; Intoh, Atsushi; Ohtaka, Manami; Nakanishi, Mahito; Sugino, Hiromu; Asashima, Makoto; Kurisaki, Akira

2014-12-01

Pluripotent stem cells have been shown to have unique nuclear properties, for example, hyperdynamic chromatin and large, condensed nucleoli. However, the contribution of the latter unique nucleolar character to pluripotency has not been well understood. Here, we show that fibrillarin (FBL), a critical methyltransferase for ribosomal RNA (rRNA) processing in nucleoli, is one of the proteins highly expressed in pluripotent embryonic stem (ES) cells. Stable expression of FBL in ES cells prolonged the pluripotent state of mouse ES cells cultured in the absence of leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF). Analyses using deletion mutants and a point mutant revealed that the methyltransferase activity of FBL regulates stem cell pluripotency. Knockdown of this gene led to significant delays in rRNA processing, growth inhibition, and apoptosis in mouse ES cells. Interestingly, both partial knockdown of FBL and treatment with actinomycin D, an inhibitor of rRNA synthesis, induced the expression of differentiation markers in the presence of LIF and promoted stem cell differentiation into neuronal lineages. Moreover, we identified p53 signaling as the regulatory pathway for pluripotency and differentiation of ES cells. These results suggest that proper activity of rRNA production in nucleoli is a novel factor for the regulation of pluripotency and differentiation ability of ES cells. © 2014 AlphaMed Press.

Brief Report: Human Acute Myeloid Leukemia Reprogramming to Pluripotency Is a Rare Event and Selects for Patient Hematopoietic Cells Devoid of Leukemic Mutations.

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Lee, Jong-Hee; Salci, Kyle R; Reid, Jennifer C; Orlando, Luca; Tanasijevic, Borko; Shapovalova, Zoya; Bhatia, Mickie

2017-09-01

Induced pluripotent stem cell reprogramming has provided critical insights into disease processes by modeling the genetics and related clinical pathophysiology. Human cancer represents highly diverse genetics, as well as inter- and intra-patient heterogeneity, where cellular model systems capable of capturing this disease complexity would be invaluable. Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) represents one of most heterogeneous cancers and has been divided into genetic subtypes correlated with unique risk stratification over the decades. Here, we report our efforts to induce pluripotency from the heterogeneous population of human patients that represents this disease in the clinic. Using robust optimized reprogramming methods, we demonstrate that reprogramming of AML cells harboring leukemic genomic aberrations is a rare event with the exception of those with de novo mixed-lineage leukemia (MLL) mutations that can be reprogrammed and model drug responses in vitro. Our findings indicate that unlike hematopoietic cells devoid of genomic aberrations, AML cells harboring driver mutations are refractory to reprogramming. Expression of MLL fusion proteins in AML cells did not contribute to induced reprogramming success, which continued to select for patient derived cells devoid of AML patient-specific aberrations. Our study reveals that unanticipated blockades to achieving pluripotency reside within the majority of transformed AML patient cells. Stem Cells 2017;35:2095-2102. © 2017 AlphaMed Press.

Modeling human diseases with induced pluripotent stem cells: from 2D to 3D and beyond.

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Liu, Chun; Oikonomopoulos, Angelos; Sayed, Nazish; Wu, Joseph C

2018-03-08

The advent of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) presents unprecedented opportunities to model human diseases. Differentiated cells derived from iPSCs in two-dimensional (2D) monolayers have proven to be a relatively simple tool for exploring disease pathogenesis and underlying mechanisms. In this Spotlight article, we discuss the progress and limitations of the current 2D iPSC disease-modeling platform, as well as recent advancements in the development of human iPSC models that mimic in vivo tissues and organs at the three-dimensional (3D) level. Recent bioengineering approaches have begun to combine different 3D organoid types into a single '4D multi-organ system'. We summarize the advantages of this approach and speculate on the future role of 4D multi-organ systems in human disease modeling. © 2018. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

A Refined Culture System for Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Intestinal Epithelial Organoids

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Yu Takahashi

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Gut epithelial organoids are routinely used to investigate intestinal biology; however, current culture methods are not amenable to genetic manipulation, and it is difficult to generate sufficient numbers for high-throughput studies. Here, we present an improved culture system of human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC-derived intestinal organoids involving four methodological advances. (1 We adopted a lentiviral vector to readily establish and optimize conditioned medium for human intestinal organoid culture. (2 We obtained intestinal organoids from human iPSCs more efficiently by supplementing WNT3A and fibroblast growth factor 2 to induce differentiation into definitive endoderm. (3 Using 2D culture, followed by re-establishment of organoids, we achieved an efficient transduction of exogenous genes in organoids. (4 We investigated suspension organoid culture without scaffolds for easier harvesting and assays. These techniques enable us to develop, maintain, and expand intestinal organoids readily and quickly at low cost, facilitating high-throughput screening of pathogenic factors and candidate treatments for gastrointestinal diseases.

Generation of human induced pluripotent stem cell lines from human dermal fibroblasts using a modified RNA system

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Kyung-Ok Uhm

2017-10-01

Full Text Available We generated human induced pluripotent stem cells (KSCBi002-B and KSCBi002-B-1 from the dermal fibroblasts of a donor using a modified RNA-based gene delivery method. According to GTG-banding analysis, the generated KSCBi002-B line has a cytogenetic abnormality (46,XY, t(1;4(q21;q25 that is distinct from that of the donor, whereas KSCBi002-B-1 has a normal karyotype (46,XY. These cell lines can be useful as a model for characterizing the hiPSCs generated by a non-viral and non-integrative system, or as a chromosomal balanced translocation model. These two cell lines are registered and available from the National Stem Cell Bank, Korea National Institute of Health.

Method for evaluation of human induced pluripotent stem cell quality using image analysis based on the biological morphology of cells.

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Wakui, Takashi; Matsumoto, Tsuyoshi; Matsubara, Kenta; Kawasaki, Tomoyuki; Yamaguchi, Hiroshi; Akutsu, Hidenori

2017-10-01

We propose an image analysis method for quality evaluation of human pluripotent stem cells based on biologically interpretable features. It is important to maintain the undifferentiated state of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) while culturing the cells during propagation. Cell culture experts visually select good quality cells exhibiting the morphological features characteristic of undifferentiated cells. Experts have empirically determined that these features comprise prominent and abundant nucleoli, less intercellular spacing, and fewer differentiating cellular nuclei. We quantified these features based on experts' visual inspection of phase contrast images of iPSCs and found that these features are effective for evaluating iPSC quality. We then developed an iPSC quality evaluation method using an image analysis technique. The method allowed accurate classification, equivalent to visual inspection by experts, of three iPSC cell lines.

Enhanced elastin synthesis and maturation in human vascular smooth muscle tissue derived from induced-pluripotent stem cells.

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Eoh, Joon H; Shen, Nian; Burke, Jacqueline A; Hinderer, Svenja; Xia, Zhiyong; Schenke-Layland, Katja; Gerecht, Sharon

2017-04-01

Obtaining vascular smooth muscle tissue with mature, functional elastic fibers is a key obstacle in tissue-engineered blood vessels. Poor elastin secretion and organization leads to a loss of specialization in contractile smooth muscle cells, resulting in over proliferation and graft failure. In this study, human induced-pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) were differentiated into early smooth muscle cells, seeded onto a hybrid poly(ethylene glycol) dimethacrylate/poly (l-lactide) (PEGdma-PLA) scaffold and cultured in a bioreactor while exposed to pulsatile flow, towards maturation into contractile smooth muscle tissue. We evaluated the effects of pulsatile flow on cellular organization as well as elastin expression and assembly in the engineered tissue compared to a static control through immunohistochemistry, gene expression and functionality assays. We show that culturing under pulsatile flow resulted in organized and functional hiPSC derived smooth muscle tissue. Immunohistochemistry analysis revealed hiPSC-smooth muscle tissue with robust, well-organized cells and elastic fibers and the supporting microfibril proteins necessary for elastic fiber assembly. Through qRT-PCR analysis, we found significantly increased expression of elastin, fibronectin, and collagen I, indicating the synthesis of necessary extracellular matrix components. Functionality assays revealed that hiPSC-smooth muscle tissue cultured in the bioreactor had an increased calcium signaling and contraction in response to a cholinergic agonist, significantly higher mature elastin content and improved mechanical properties in comparison to the static control. The findings presented here detail an effective approach to engineering elastic human vascular smooth muscle tissue with the functionality necessary for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine applications. Obtaining robust, mature elastic fibers is a key obstacle in tissue-engineered blood vessels. Human induced-pluripotent stem cells have

Present and future challenges of induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Ohnuki, Mari; Takahashi, Kazutoshi

2015-10-19

Growing old is our destiny. However, the mature differentiated cells making up our body can be rejuvenated to an embryo-like fate called pluripotency which is an ability to differentiate into all cell types by enforced expression of defined transcription factors. The discovery of this induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology has opened up unprecedented opportunities in regenerative medicine, disease modelling and drug discovery. In this review, we introduce the applications and future perspectives of human iPSCs and we also show how iPSC technology has evolved along the way. © 2015 The Author(s).

Generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells from a Bombay individual: Moving towards 'universal-donor' red blood cells

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Seifinejad, Ali; Taei, Adeleh [Department of Stem Cells and Developmental Biology, Royan Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Technology, P.O. Box 19395-4644, ACECR, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Totonchi, Mehdi; Vazirinasab, Hamed [Department of Genetics, Royan Institute for Reproductive Biomedicine, ACECR, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Hassani, Seideh Nafiseh [Department of Stem Cells and Developmental Biology, Royan Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Technology, P.O. Box 19395-4644, ACECR, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Aghdami, Nasser [Department of Stem Cells and Developmental Biology, Royan Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Technology, P.O. Box 19395-4644, ACECR, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Department of Regenerative Biomedicine, Royan Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Technology, ACECR, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Shahbazi, Ebrahim [Department of Stem Cells and Developmental Biology, Royan Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Technology, P.O. Box 19395-4644, ACECR, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Yazdi, Reza Salman [Department of Genetics, Royan Institute for Reproductive Biomedicine, ACECR, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Salekdeh, Ghasem Hosseini, E-mail: Salekdeh@royaninstitute.org [Department of Molecular Systems Biology, Royan Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Technology, ACECR, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Department of Systems Biology, Agricultural Biotechnology Research Institute of Iran, Karaj (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Baharvand, Hossein, E-mail: Baharvand@royaninstitute.org [Department of Stem Cells and Developmental Biology, Royan Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Technology, P.O. Box 19395-4644, ACECR, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Department of Regenerative Biomedicine, Royan Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Technology, ACECR, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Department of Developmental Biology, University of Science and Culture, ACECR, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2010-01-01

Bombay phenotype is one of the rare phenotypes in the ABO blood group system that fails to express ABH antigens on red blood cells. Nonsense or missense mutations in fucosyltransfrase1 (FUT1) and fucosyltransfrase2 (FUT2) genes are known to create this phenotype. This blood group is compatible with all other blood groups as a donor, as it does not express the H antigen on the red blood cells. In this study, we describe the establishment of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from the dermal fibroblasts of a Bombay blood-type individual by the ectopic expression of established transcription factors Klf4, Oct4, Sox2, and c-Myc. Sequence analyses of fibroblasts and iPSCs revealed a nonsense mutation 826C to T (276 Gln to Ter) in the FUT1 gene and a missense mutation 739G to A (247 Gly to Ser) in the FUT2 gene in the Bombay phenotype under study. The established iPSCs resemble human embryonic stem cells in morphology, passaging, surface and pluripotency markers, normal karyotype, gene expression, DNA methylation of critical pluripotency genes, and in-vitro differentiation. The directed differentiation of the iPSCs into hematopoietic lineage cells displayed increased expression of the hematopoietic lineage markers such as CD34, CD133, RUNX1, KDR, {alpha}-globulin, and {gamma}-globulin. Such specific stem cells provide an unprecedented opportunity to produce a universal blood group donor, in-vitro, thus enabling cellular replacement therapies, once the safety issue is resolved.

Advances in Microfluidic Platforms for Analyzing and Regulating Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Qian, Tongcheng; Shusta, Eric V.; Palecek, Sean P.

2015-01-01

Microfluidic devices employ submillimeter length scale control of flow to achieve high-resolution spatial and temporal control over the microenvironment, providing powerful tools to elucidate mechanisms of human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC) regulation and to elicit desired hPSC fates. In addition, microfluidics allow control of paracrine and juxtracrine signaling, thereby enabling fabrication of microphysiological systems comprised of multiple cell types organized into organs-on-a-chip. Microfluidic cell culture systems can also be integrated with actuators and sensors, permitting construction of high-density arrays of cell-based biosensors for screening applications. This review describes recent advances in using microfluidics to understand mechanisms by which the microenvironment regulates hPSC fates and applications of microfluidics to realize the potential of hPSCs for in vitro modeling and screening applications. PMID:26313850

Dosage and cell line dependent inhibitory effect of bFGF supplement in human pluripotent stem cell culture on inactivated human mesenchymal stem cells.

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Quang, Tara; Marquez, Maribel; Blanco, Giselle; Zhao, Yuanxiang

2014-01-01

Many different culture systems have been developed for expanding human pluripotent stem cells (hESCs and hiPSCs). In general, 4-10 ng/ml of bFGF is supplemented in culture media in feeder-dependent systems regardless of feeder cell types, whereas in feeder-free systems, up to 100 ng/ml of bFGF is required for maintaining long-term culture on various substrates. The amount of bFGF required in native hESCs growth niche is unclear. Here we report using inactivated adipose-derived human mesenchymal stem cells as feeder cells to examine long-term parallel cultures of two hESCs lines (H1 and H9) and one hiPSCs line (DF19-9-7T) in media supplemented with 0, 0.4 or 4 ng/ml of bFGF for up to 23 passages, as well as parallel cultures of H9 and DF19 in media supplemented with 4, 20 or 100 ng/ml bFGF for up to 13 passages for comparison. Across all cell lines tested, bFGF supplement demonstrated inhibitory effect over growth expansion, single cell colonization and recovery from freezing in a dosage dependent manner. In addition, bFGF exerted differential effects on different cell lines, inducing H1 and DF19 differentiation at 4 ng/ml or higher, while permitting long-term culture of H9 at the same concentrations with no apparent dosage effect. Pluripotency was confirmed for all cell lines cultured in 0, 0.4 or 4 ng/ml bFGF excluding H1-4 ng, as well as H9 cultured in 4, 20 and 100 ng/ml bFGF. However, DF19 demonstrated similar karyotypic abnormality in both 0 and 4 ng/ml bFGF media while H1 and H9 were karyotypically normal in 0 ng/ml bFGF after long-term culture. Our results indicate that exogenous bFGF exerts dosage and cell line dependent effect on human pluripotent stem cells cultured on mesenchymal stem cells, and implies optimal use of bFGF in hESCs/hiPSCs culture should be based on specific cell line and its culture system.

Structural Analysis of Three-dimensional Human Neural Tissue derived from Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Terrence Brooks, Patrick; Rasmussen, Mikkel Aabech; Hyttel, Poul

2016-01-01

Objective: The present study aimed at establishing a method for production of a three-dimensional (3D) human neural tissue derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and analyzing the outcome by a combination of tissue ultrastructure and expression of neural markers. Methods: A two......-step cell culture procedure was implemented by subjecting human iPSCs to a 3D scaffoldbased neural differentiation protocol. First, neural fate-inducing small molecules were used to create a neuroepithelial monolayer. Second, the monolayer was trypsinized into single cells and seeded into a porous...... polystyrene scaffold and further cultured to produce a 3D neural tissue. The neural tissue was characterized by a combination of immunohistochemistry and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Results: iPSCs developed into a 3D neural tissue expressing markers for neural progenitor cells, early neural...

Generating a non-integrating human induced pluripotent stem cell bank from urine-derived cells.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yanting Xue

Full Text Available Induced pluripotent stem cell (iPS cell holds great potential for applications in regenerative medicine, drug discovery, and disease modeling. We describe here a practical method to generate human iPS cells from urine-derived cells (UCs under feeder-free, virus-free, serum-free condition and without oncogene c-MYC. We showed that this approach could be applied in a large population with different genetic backgrounds. UCs are easily accessible and exhibit high reprogramming efficiency, offering advantages over other cell types used for the purpose of iPS generation. Using the approach described in this study, we have generated 93 iPS cell lines from 20 donors with diverse genetic backgrounds. The non-viral iPS cell bank with these cell lines provides a valuable resource for iPS cells research, facilitating future applications of human iPS cells.

Disease-specific induced pluripotent stem cells: a platform for human disease modeling and drug discovery.

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Jang, Jiho; Yoo, Jeong-Eun; Lee, Jeong-Ah; Lee, Dongjin R; Kim, Ji Young; Huh, Yong Jun; Kim, Dae-Sung; Park, Chul-Yong; Hwang, Dong-Youn; Kim, Han-Soo; Kang, Hoon-Chul; Kim, Dong-Wook

2012-03-31

The generation of disease-specific induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines from patients with incurable diseases is a promising approach for studying disease mechanisms and drug screening. Such innovation enables to obtain autologous cell sources in regenerative medicine. Herein, we report the generation and characterization of iPSCs from fibroblasts of patients with sporadic or familial diseases, including Parkinson's disease (PD), Alzheimer's disease (AD), juvenile-onset, type I diabetes mellitus (JDM), and Duchenne type muscular dystrophy (DMD), as well as from normal human fibroblasts (WT). As an example to modeling disease using disease-specific iPSCs, we also discuss the previously established childhood cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy (CCALD)- and adrenomyeloneuropathy (AMN)-iPSCs by our group. Through DNA fingerprinting analysis, the origins of generated disease-specific iPSC lines were identified. Each iPSC line exhibited an intense alkaline phosphatase activity, expression of pluripotent markers, and the potential to differentiate into all three embryonic germ layers: the ectoderm, endoderm, and mesoderm. Expression of endogenous pluripotent markers and downregulation of retrovirus-delivered transgenes [OCT4 (POU5F1), SOX2, KLF4, and c-MYC] were observed in the generated iPSCs. Collectively, our results demonstrated that disease-specific iPSC lines characteristically resembled hESC lines. Furthermore, we were able to differentiate PD-iPSCs, one of the disease-specific-iPSC lines we generated, into dopaminergic (DA) neurons, the cell type mostly affected by PD. These PD-specific DA neurons along with other examples of cell models derived from disease-specific iPSCs would provide a powerful platform for examining the pathophysiology of relevant diseases at the cellular and molecular levels and for developing new drugs and therapeutic regimens.

Generation and periodontal differentiation of human gingival fibroblasts-derived integration-free induced pluripotent stem cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yin, Xiaohui [Department of Periodontology, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Peking University, 22 South Avenue Zhong-Guan-Cun, Beijing 100081 (China); Peking University Stem Cell Research Center and Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing 100191 (China); Li, Yang [Peking University Stem Cell Research Center and Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing 100191 (China); Li, Jingwen [Department of Periodontology, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Peking University, 22 South Avenue Zhong-Guan-Cun, Beijing 100081 (China); Li, Peng [Faculty of Dentistry, The University of Hong Kong, 34 Hospital Road, Hong Kong SAR (China); Liu, Yinan [Peking University Stem Cell Research Center and Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing 100191 (China); Wen, Jinhua, E-mail: jhwen@bjmu.edu.cn [Peking University Stem Cell Research Center and Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, 38 Xueyuan Road, Beijing 100191 (China); Luan, Qingxian, E-mail: kqluanqx@126.com [Department of Periodontology, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Peking University, 22 South Avenue Zhong-Guan-Cun, Beijing 100081 (China)

2016-05-06

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have been recognized as a promising cell source for periodontal tissue regeneration. However, the conventional virus-based reprogramming approach is associated with a high risk of genetic mutation and limits their therapeutic utility. Here, we successfully generated iPSCs from readily accessible human gingival fibroblasts (hGFs) through an integration-free and feeder-free approach via delivery of reprogramming factors of Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, L-myc, Lin28 and TP53 shRNA with episomal plasmid vectors. The iPSCs presented similar morphology and proliferation characteristics as embryonic stem cells (ESCs), and expressed pluripotent markers including Oct4, Tra181, Nanog and SSEA-4. Additionally, these cells maintained a normal karyotype and showed decreased CpG methylation ratio in the promoter regions of Oct4 and Nanog. In vivo teratoma formation assay revealed the development of tissues representative of three germ layers, confirming the acquisition of pluripotency. Furthermore, treatment of the iPSCs in vitro with enamel matrix derivative (EMD) or growth/differentiation factor-5 (GDF-5) significantly up-regulated the expression of periodontal tissue markers associated with bone, periodontal ligament and cementum respectively. Taken together, our data demonstrate that hGFs are a valuable cell source for generating integration-free iPSCs, which could be sequentially induced toward periodontal cells under the treatment of EMD and GDF-5. - Highlights: • Integration-free iPSCs are successfully generated from hGFs via an episomal approach. • EMD promotes differentiation of the hGFs-derived iPSCs toward periodontal cells. • GDF-5 promotes differentiation of the hGFs-derived iPSCs toward periodontal cells. • hGFs-derived iPSCs could be a promising cell source for periodontal regeneration.

Generation and periodontal differentiation of human gingival fibroblasts-derived integration-free induced pluripotent stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yin, Xiaohui; Li, Yang; Li, Jingwen; Li, Peng; Liu, Yinan; Wen, Jinhua; Luan, Qingxian

2016-01-01

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have been recognized as a promising cell source for periodontal tissue regeneration. However, the conventional virus-based reprogramming approach is associated with a high risk of genetic mutation and limits their therapeutic utility. Here, we successfully generated iPSCs from readily accessible human gingival fibroblasts (hGFs) through an integration-free and feeder-free approach via delivery of reprogramming factors of Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, L-myc, Lin28 and TP53 shRNA with episomal plasmid vectors. The iPSCs presented similar morphology and proliferation characteristics as embryonic stem cells (ESCs), and expressed pluripotent markers including Oct4, Tra181, Nanog and SSEA-4. Additionally, these cells maintained a normal karyotype and showed decreased CpG methylation ratio in the promoter regions of Oct4 and Nanog. In vivo teratoma formation assay revealed the development of tissues representative of three germ layers, confirming the acquisition of pluripotency. Furthermore, treatment of the iPSCs in vitro with enamel matrix derivative (EMD) or growth/differentiation factor-5 (GDF-5) significantly up-regulated the expression of periodontal tissue markers associated with bone, periodontal ligament and cementum respectively. Taken together, our data demonstrate that hGFs are a valuable cell source for generating integration-free iPSCs, which could be sequentially induced toward periodontal cells under the treatment of EMD and GDF-5. - Highlights: • Integration-free iPSCs are successfully generated from hGFs via an episomal approach. • EMD promotes differentiation of the hGFs-derived iPSCs toward periodontal cells. • GDF-5 promotes differentiation of the hGFs-derived iPSCs toward periodontal cells. • hGFs-derived iPSCs could be a promising cell source for periodontal regeneration.

An all-in-one, Tet-On 3G inducible PiggyBac system for human pluripotent stem cells and derivatives.

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Randolph, Lauren N; Bao, Xiaoping; Zhou, Chikai; Lian, Xiaojun

2017-05-08

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) offer tremendous promise in tissue engineering and cell-based therapies due to their unique combination of two properties: pluripotency and unlimited proliferative capacity. However, directed differentiation of hPSCs to clinically relevant cell lineages is needed to achieve the goal of hPSC-based therapies. This requires a deep understanding of how cell signaling pathways converge on the nucleus to control differentiation and the ability to dissect gene function in a temporal manner. Here, we report the use of the PiggyBac transposon and a Tet-On 3G drug-inducible gene expression system to achieve versatile inducible gene expression in hPSC lines. Our new system, XLone, offers improvement over previous Tet-On systems with significantly reduced background expression and increased sensitivity to doxycycline. Transgene expression in hPSCs is tightly regulated in response to doxycycline treatment. In addition, the PiggyBac elements in our XLone construct provide a rapid and efficient strategy for generating stable transgenic hPSCs. Our inducible gene expression PiggyBac transposon system should facilitate the study of gene function and directed differentiation in human stem cells.

[Breakthrough in research on pluripotent stem cells and their application in medicine].

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Valdimarsdóttir, Guðrún; Richter, Anne

2015-12-01

Embryonic stem cells are, as the name indicates, isolated from embryos. They are pluripotent cells which can be maintained undifferentiated or induced to differentiate into any cell type of the body. In 1998 the first isolation of human embryonic stem cells was successful and they became an interesting source for stem cell regenerative medicine. Only 8 years later pluripotent stem cells were generated by reprogramming somatic cells into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). This was a revolution in the way people thought of cell commitment during development. Since then, a lot of research has been done in understanding the molecular biology of pluripotent stem cells. iPSCs can be generated from somatic cells of a patient and therefore have the same genome. Hence, iPSCs have great potential application in medicine, as they can be utilized in disease modelling, drug screening and cell replacement therapy.

Comparison of American mink embryonic stem and induced pluripotent stem cell transcriptomes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Menzorov, Aleksei G; Matveeva, Natalia M.; Markakis, Marios Nektarios

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND: Recently fibroblasts of many mammalian species have been reprogrammed to pluripotent state using overexpression of several transcription factors. This technology allows production of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells with properties similar to embryonic stem (ES) cells....... The completeness of reprogramming process is well studied in such species as mouse and human but there is not enough data on other species. We produced American mink (Neovison vison) ES and iPS cells and compared these cells using transcriptome analysis. RESULTS: We report the generation of 10 mink ES and 22 i......PS cell lines. The majority of the analyzed cell lines had normal diploid chromosome number. The only ES cell line with XX chromosome set had both X-chromosomes in active state that is characteristic of pluripotent cells. The pluripotency of ES and iPS cell lines was confirmed by formation of teratomas...

Atorvastatin Inhibits the HIF1α-PPAR Axis, Which Is Essential for Maintaining the Function of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Nakashima, Yoshiki; Miyagi-Shiohira, Chika; Noguchi, Hirofumi; Omasa, Takeshi

2018-06-19

We herein report a novel mechanism of action of statin preparations using a new drug discovery method. Milk fat globule-EGF factor 8 protein (MFG-E8) was identified from the secretory component of mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF) as a cell adhesion-promoting factor effective for screening active cellular agents of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) in vitro using electrochemical impedance. Our analyses showed that atorvastatin did not cause death in myocardial cells differentiated from hiPSCs but reduced the pluripotent cell survival in vitro when using serum- and albumin-free media, and inhibited the ability to form teratomas in mice. This result could have been already the cytopathic effect of atorvastatin, and complete elimination of hiPSCs was confirmed in the xenotransplantation assay. The administration of atorvastatin to hiPSCs caused the expression of hypoxia inducible factor (HIF)1α mRNA to be unchanged at 6 hr and downregulated at 24 hr. In addition, the inhibition of the survival of hiPSCs was confirmed by HIF1α-peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) axis inhibition. These results suggest that the addition of atorvastatin to hiPSC cultures reduces the survival of pluripotent cells by suppressing the HIF1α-PPAR axis. In summary, the HIF1α-PPAR axis has an important role in maintaining the survival of pluripotent hiPSCs. Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Young at Heart: Pioneering Approaches to Model Nonischaemic Cardiomyopathy with Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

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Aoife Gowran

2016-01-01

Full Text Available A mere 9 years have passed since the revolutionary report describing the derivation of induced pluripotent stem cells from human fibroblasts and the first in-patient translational use of cells obtained from these stem cells has already been achieved. From the perspectives of clinicians and researchers alike, the promise of induced pluripotent stem cells is alluring if somewhat beguiling. It is now evident that this technology is nascent and many areas for refinement have been identified and need to be considered before induced pluripotent stem cells can be routinely used to stratify, treat and cure patients, and to faithfully model diseases for drug screening purposes. This review specifically addresses the pioneering approaches to improve induced pluripotent stem cell based models of nonischaemic cardiomyopathy.

Generation of induced pluripotent stem cell line (ZZUi011-A from urine sample of a normal human

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Huifang Sun

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Urine cells collected from 200 mL clean midsection urine of a 25-year-old healthy man were reprogrammed into pluripotent stem cells via Sendai virus delivery system. The induced pluripotent stem cells showed a normal karyotype and exhibited the potential to differentiate into three germ layers in a teratoma assay. This cell line may serve as a useful control for comparison with other pluripotent stem cell lines induced from somatic cells of patients with genetic neurodegenerative disorders.

Enhanced human somatic cell reprogramming efficiency by fusion of the MYC transactivation domain and OCT4

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Ling Wang

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The development of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs holds great promise for regenerative medicine. However the iPSC induction efficiency is still very low and with lengthy reprogramming process. We utilized the highly potent transactivation domain (TAD of MYC protein to engineer the human OCT4 fusion proteins. Applying the MYC-TAD-OCT4 fusion proteins in mouse iPSC generation leads to shorter reprogramming dynamics, with earlier activation of pluripotent markers in reprogrammed cells than wild type OCT4 (wt-OCT4. Dramatic enhancement of iPSC colony induction efficiency and shortened reprogramming dynamics were observed when these MYC-TAD-OCT4 fusion proteins were used to reprogram primary human cells. The OCT4 fusion proteins induced human iPSCs are pluripotent. We further show that the MYC Box I (MBI is dispensable while both MBII and the linking region between MBI/II are essential for the enhanced reprogramming activity of MYC-TAD-OCT4 fusion protein. Consistent with an enhanced transcription activity, the engineered OCT4 significantly stimulated the expression of genes specifically targeted by OCT4-alone, OCT4/SOX2, and OCT4/SOX2/KLF4 during human iPSC induction, compared with the wt-OCT4. The MYC-TAD-OCT4 fusion proteins we generated will be valuable tools for studying the reprogramming mechanisms and for efficient iPSC generation for humans as well as for other species.

Cost-effective master cell bank validation of multiple clinical-grade human pluripotent stem cell lines from a single donor.

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Devito, Liani; Petrova, Anastasia; Miere, Cristian; Codognotto, Stefano; Blakely, Nicola; Lovatt, Archie; Ogilvie, Caroline; Khalaf, Yacoub; Ilic, Dusko

2014-10-01

Standardization guidelines for human pluripotent stem cells are still very broadly defined, despite ongoing clinical trials in the U.S., U.K., and Japan. The requirements for validation of human embryonic (hESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) in general follow the regulations for other clinically compliant biologics already in place but without addressing key differences between cell types or final products. In order to realize the full potential of stem cell therapy, validation criteria, methodology, and, most importantly, strategy, should address the shortfalls and efficiency of current approaches; without this, hESC- and, especially, iPSC-based therapy will not be able to compete with other technologies in a cost-efficient way. We addressed the protocols for testing cell lines for human viral pathogens and propose a novel strategy that would significantly reduce costs. It is highly unlikely that the multiple cell lines derived in parallel from a tissue sample taken from one donor would have different profiles of endogenous viral pathogens; we therefore argue that samples from the Master Cell Banks of sibling lines could be safely pooled for validation. We illustrate this approach with tiered validation of two sibling clinical-grade hESC lines, KCL033 and KCL034 (stage 1, sterility; stage 2, specific human pathogens; and stage 3, nonspecific human pathogens). The results of all tests were negative. This cost-effective strategy could also be applied for validation of Master Cell Banks of multiple clinical-grade iPSC lines derived from a single donor. ©AlphaMed Press.

Molecular mechanisms of induced pluripotency.

Science.gov (United States)

Kulcenty, Katarzyna; Wróblewska, Joanna; Mazurek, Sylwia; Liszewska, Ewa; Jaworski, Jacek

2015-01-01

Growing knowledge concerning transcriptional control of cellular pluripotency has led to the discovery that the fate of differentiated cells can be reversed, which has resulted in the generation, by means of genetic manipulation, of induced pluripotent stem cells. Overexpression of just four pluripotency-related transcription factors, namely Oct3/4, Sox2, Klf4, and c-Myc (Yamanaka factors, OKSM), in fibroblasts appears sufficient to produce this new cell type. Currently, we know that these factors induce several changes in genetic program of differentiated cells that can be divided in two general phases: the initial one is stochastic, and the subsequent one is highly hierarchical and organised. This review briefly discusses the molecular events leading to induction of pluripotency in response to forced presence of OKSM factors in somatic cells. We also discuss other reprogramming strategies used thus far as well as the advantages and disadvantages of laboratory approaches towards pluripotency induction in different cell types.

Efficient Generation of Functional Hepatocytes From Human Embryonic Stem Cells and Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells by HNF4α Transduction

OpenAIRE

Takayama, Kazuo; Inamura, Mitsuru; Kawabata, Kenji; Katayama, Kazufumi; Higuchi, Maiko; Tashiro, Katsuhisa; Nonaka, Aki; Sakurai, Fuminori; Hayakawa, Takao; Kusuda Furue, Miho; Mizuguchi, Hiroyuki

2012-01-01

Hepatocyte-like cells from human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are expected to be a useful source of cells drug discovery. Although we recently reported that hepatic commitment is promoted by transduction of SOX17 and HEX into human ESC- and iPSC-derived cells, these hepatocyte-like cells were not sufficiently mature for drug screening. To promote hepatic maturation, we utilized transduction of the hepatocyte nuclear factor 4α (HNF4α) gene, which is kn...

Differentiation and characterization of rhesus monkey atrial and ventricular cardiomyocytes from induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Zhang, Xiaoqian; Cao, Henghua; Bai, Shuyun; Huo, Weibang; Ma, Yue

2017-04-01

The combination of non-human primate animals and their induced pluripotent stem cell derived cardiomyocytes (iPSC-CMs) provides not only transplantation models for cell-based therapy of heart diseases, but also opportunities for heart-related drug research on both cellular and animal levels. However, the subtypes and electrophysiology properties of non-human primate iPSC-CMs hadn't been detailed characterized. In this study, we generated rhesus monkey induced pluripotent stem cells (riPSCs), and efficiently differentiated them into ventricular or atrial cardiomyocytes by modulating retinoic acid (RA) pathways. Our results revealed that the electrophysiological characteristics and response to canonical drugs of riPSC-CMs were similar with those of human pluripotent stem cell derived CMs. Therefore, rhesus monkeys and their iPSC-CMs provide a powerful and practicable system for heart related biomedical research. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Interpretation of field potentials measured on a multi electrode array in pharmacological toxicity screening on primary and human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tertoolen, L.G.J.; Braam, S. R.; van Meer, B.J.; Passier, R.; Mummery, C. L.

2018-01-01

Multi electrode arrays (MEAs) are increasingly used to detect external field potentials in electrically active cells. Recently, in combination with cardiomyocytes derived from human (induced) pluripotent stem cells they have started to become a preferred tool to examine newly developed drugs for

Reprogramming human amniotic fluid stem cells to functional pluripotency by manipulation of culture conditions.

OpenAIRE

sprotocols

2015-01-01

Authors: Dafni Moschidou & Pascale V Guillot ### Abstract Pluripotent stem cells have potential applications in regenerative medicine, disease modelling and drug screening. Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells have first been generated from fibroblasts using retroviral insertion of OCT4A, SOX2, c-MYC and KLF4. Since then, a number of methods have been developed to avoid the random integration of ectopic factors in the genome and the low efficiency of the process. Those include alterna...

IAP-Based Cell Sorting Results in Homogeneous Transplantable Dopaminergic Precursor Cells Derived from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Lehnen, Daniela; Barral, Serena; Cardoso, Tiago; Grealish, Shane; Heuer, Andreas; Smiyakin, Andrej; Kirkeby, Agnete; Kollet, Jutta; Cremer, Harold; Parmar, Malin; Bosio, Andreas; Knöbel, Sebastian

2017-10-10

Human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC)-derived mesencephalic dopaminergic (mesDA) neurons can relieve motor deficits in animal models of Parkinson's disease (PD). Clinical translation of differentiation protocols requires standardization of production procedures, and surface-marker-based cell sorting is considered instrumental for reproducible generation of defined cell products. Here, we demonstrate that integrin-associated protein (IAP) is a cell surface marker suitable for enrichment of hPSC-derived mesDA progenitor cells. Immunomagnetically sorted IAP + mesDA progenitors showed increased expression of ventral midbrain floor plate markers, lacked expression of pluripotency markers, and differentiated into mature dopaminergic (DA) neurons in vitro. Intrastriatal transplantation of IAP + cells sorted at day 16 of differentiation in a rat model of PD resulted in functional recovery. Grafts from sorted IAP + mesDA progenitors were more homogeneous in size and DA neuron density. Thus, we suggest IAP-based sorting for reproducible prospective enrichment of mesDA progenitor cells in clinical cell replacement strategies. Copyright © 2017 Miltenyi Biotec GmbH. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Regulatory Non-Coding RNAs in Pluripotent Stem Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alessandro Rosa

2013-07-01

Full Text Available The most part of our genome encodes for RNA transcripts are never translated into proteins. These include families of RNA molecules with a regulatory function, which can be arbitrarily subdivided in short (less than 200 nucleotides and long non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs. MicroRNAs, which act post-transcriptionally to repress the function of target mRNAs, belong to the first group. Included in the second group are multi-exonic and polyadenylated long ncRNAs (lncRNAs, localized either in the nucleus, where they can associate with chromatin remodeling complexes to regulate transcription, or in the cytoplasm, acting as post-transcriptional regulators. Pluripotent stem cells, such as embryonic stem cells (ESCs or induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs, represent useful systems for modeling normal development and human diseases, as well as promising tools for regenerative medicine. To fully explore their potential, however, a deep understanding of the molecular basis of stemness is crucial. In recent years, increasing evidence of the importance of regulation by ncRNAs in pluripotent cells is accumulating. In this review, we will discuss recent findings pointing to multiple roles played by regulatory ncRNAs in ESC and iPSCs, where they act in concert with signaling pathways, transcriptional regulatory circuitries and epigenetic factors to modulate the balance between pluripotency and differentiation.

Stem cell pluripotency factor NANOG is expressed in human fetal gonocytes, testicular carcinoma in situ and germ cell tumours

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hoei-Hansen, C E; Almstrup, K; Nielsen, J E

2005-01-01

AIMS: NANOG is a key regulator of embryonic stem cell (ESC) self-renewal and pluripotency. Our recent genome-wide gene expression profiling study of the precursor of testicular germ cell tumours, carcinoma in situ testis (CIS), showed close similarity between ESC and CIS, including high NANOG...... earlier than for OCT-4. We detected no expression at the protein level in normal testis. CONCLUSIONS: NANOG is a new marker for testicular CIS and germ cell tumours and the high level of NANOG along with OCT-4 are determinants of the stem cell-like pluripotency of the preinvasive CIS cell. Timing of NANOG...... expression. In the present study we analysed the protein expression of NANOG during normal development of human testis and in a large series of neoplastic/dysgenetic specimens. METHODS AND RESULTS: We detected abundant expression of NANOG in CIS and in CIS-derived testicular tumours with marked differences...

Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Macrophages Share Ontogeny with MYB-Independent Tissue-Resident Macrophages

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Julian Buchrieser

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Tissue-resident macrophages, such as microglia, Kupffer cells, and Langerhans cells, derive from Myb-independent yolk sac (YS progenitors generated before the emergence of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs. Myb-independent YS-derived resident macrophages self-renew locally, independently of circulating monocytes and HSCs. In contrast, adult blood monocytes, as well as infiltrating, gut, and dermal macrophages, derive from Myb-dependent HSCs. These findings are derived from the mouse, using gene knockouts and lineage tracing, but their applicability to human development has not been formally demonstrated. Here, we use human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs as a tool to model human hematopoietic development. By using a CRISPR-Cas9 knockout strategy, we show that human iPSC-derived monocytes/macrophages develop in an MYB-independent, RUNX1-, and SPI1 (PU.1-dependent fashion. This result makes human iPSC-derived macrophages developmentally related to and a good model for MYB-independent tissue-resident macrophages, such as alveolar and kidney macrophages, microglia, Kupffer cells, and Langerhans cells.

A fully defined and scalable 3D culture system for human pluripotent stem cell expansion and differentiation

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Lei, Yuguo; Schaffer, David V.

2013-12-01

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), including human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, are promising for numerous biomedical applications, such as cell replacement therapies, tissue and whole-organ engineering, and high-throughput pharmacology and toxicology screening. Each of these applications requires large numbers of cells of high quality; however, the scalable expansion and differentiation of hPSCs, especially for clinical utilization, remains a challenge. We report a simple, defined, efficient, scalable, and good manufacturing practice-compatible 3D culture system for hPSC expansion and differentiation. It employs a thermoresponsive hydrogel that combines easy manipulation and completely defined conditions, free of any human- or animal-derived factors, and entailing only recombinant protein factors. Under an optimized protocol, the 3D system enables long-term, serial expansion of multiple hPSCs lines with a high expansion rate (∼20-fold per 5-d passage, for a 1072-fold expansion over 280 d), yield (∼2.0 × 107 cells per mL of hydrogel), and purity (∼95% Oct4+), even with single-cell inoculation, all of which offer considerable advantages relative to current approaches. Moreover, the system enabled 3D directed differentiation of hPSCs into multiple lineages, including dopaminergic neuron progenitors with a yield of ∼8 × 107 dopaminergic progenitors per mL of hydrogel and ∼80-fold expansion by the end of a 15-d derivation. This versatile system may be useful at numerous scales, from basic biological investigation to clinical development.

Induction of Skin-Derived Precursor Cells from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Sugiyama-Nakagiri, Yoriko; Fujimura, Tsutomu; Moriwaki, Shigeru

2016-01-01

The generation of full thickness human skin from dissociated cells is an attractive approach not only for treating skin diseases, but also for treating many systemic disorders. However, it is currently not possible to obtain an unlimited number of skin dermal cells. The goal of this study was to develop a procedure to produce skin dermal stem cells from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Skin-derived precursor cells (SKPs) were isolated as adult dermal precursors that could differentiate into both neural and mesodermal progenies and could reconstitute the dermis. Thus, we attempted to generate SKPs from iPSCs that could reconstitute the skin dermis. Human iPSCs were initially cultured with recombinant noggin and SB431542, an inhibitor of activin/nodal and TGFβ signaling, to induce neural crest progenitor cells. Those cells were then treated with SKP medium that included CHIR99021, a WNT signal activator. The induction efficacy from neural crest progenitor cells to SKPs was more than 97%. No other modifiers tested were able to induce those cells. Those human iPSC-derived SKPs (hiPSC-SKPs) showed a similar gene expression signature to SKPs isolated from human skin dermis. Human iPSC-SKPs differentiated into neural and mesodermal progenies, including adipocytes, skeletogenic cell types and Schwann cells. Moreover, they could be induced to follicular type keratinization when co-cultured with human epidermal keratinocytes. We here provide a new efficient protocol to create human skin dermal stem cells from hiPSCs that could contribute to the treatment of various skin disorders.

Metabolome Profiling of Partial and Fully Reprogrammed Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

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Park, Soon-Jung; Lee, Sang A; Prasain, Nutan; Bae, Daekyeong; Kang, Hyunsu; Ha, Taewon; Kim, Jong Soo; Hong, Ki-Sung; Mantel, Charlie; Moon, Sung-Hwan; Broxmeyer, Hal E; Lee, Man Ryul

2017-05-15

Acquisition of proper metabolomic fate is required to convert somatic cells toward fully reprogrammed pluripotent stem cells. The majority of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are partially reprogrammed and have a transcriptome different from that of the pluripotent stem cells. The metabolomic profile and mitochondrial metabolic functions required to achieve full reprogramming of somatic cells to iPSC status have not yet been elucidated. Clarification of the metabolites underlying reprogramming mechanisms should enable further optimization to enhance the efficiency of obtaining fully reprogrammed iPSCs. In this study, we characterized the metabolites of human fully reprogrammed iPSCs, partially reprogrammed iPSCs, and embryonic stem cells (ESCs). Using capillary electrophoresis time-of-flight mass spectrometry-based metabolomics, we found that 89% of analyzed metabolites were similarly expressed in fully reprogrammed iPSCs and human ESCs (hESCs), whereas partially reprogrammed iPSCs shared only 74% similarly expressed metabolites with hESCs. Metabolomic profiling analysis suggested that converting mitochondrial respiration to glycolytic flux is critical for reprogramming of somatic cells into fully reprogrammed iPSCs. This characterization of metabolic reprogramming in iPSCs may enable the development of new reprogramming parameters for enhancing the generation of fully reprogrammed human iPSCs.

In Vitro Differentiation and Propagation of Urothelium from Pluripotent Stem Cell Lines.

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Osborn, Stephanie L; Kurzrock, Eric A

2018-01-01

Bioengineering of bladder tissue, particularly for those patients who have advanced bladder disease, requires a source of urothelium that is healthy, capable of significant proliferation in vitro and immunologically tolerated upon transplant. As pluripotent stem cells have the potential to fulfill such criteria, they provide a critical cell source from which urothelium might be derived in vitro and used clinically. Herein, we describe the in vitro differentiation of urothelium from the H9 human embryonic stem cell (hESC) line through the definitive endoderm (DE) phase via selective culture techniques. The protocol can be used to derive urothelium from other hESCs or human-induced pluripotent stem cells.

Ketamine Causes Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Neurons

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Ito, Hiroyuki; Uchida, Tokujiro; Makita, Koshi

2015-01-01

Purpose Ketamine toxicity has been demonstrated in nonhuman mammalian neurons. To study the toxic effect of ketamine on human neurons, an experimental model of cultured neurons from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) was examined, and the mechanism of its toxicity was investigated. Methods Human iPSC-derived dopaminergic neurons were treated with 0, 20, 100 or 500 μM ketamine for 6 and 24 h. Ketamine toxicity was evaluated by quantification of caspase 3/7 activity, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, mitochondrial membrane potential, ATP concentration, neurotransmitter reuptake activity and NADH/NAD+ ratio. Mitochondrial morphological change was analyzed by transmission electron microscopy and confocal microscopy. Results Twenty-four-hour exposure of iPSC-derived neurons to 500 μM ketamine resulted in a 40% increase in caspase 3/7 activity (P ketamine (100 μM) decreased the ATP level (22%, P ketamine concentration, which suggests that mitochondrial dysfunction preceded ROS generation and caspase activation. Conclusions We established an in vitro model for assessing the neurotoxicity of ketamine in iPSC-derived neurons. The present data indicate that the initial mitochondrial dysfunction and autophagy may be related to its inhibitory effect on the mitochondrial electron transport system, which underlies ketamine-induced neural toxicity. Higher ketamine concentration can induce ROS generation and apoptosis in human neurons. PMID:26020236

Different flavors of pluripotency

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Buecker, C.

2011-01-01

Pluripotent stem cells have the ability to give rise to derivatives of all the germ layers and hold therefore great promise for future applications like cell replacement therapies and drug screenings, for example. Pluripotent stem cells can be expanded indefinitely which leads to an almost unlimited

Telomere Elongation and Naive Pluripotent Stem Cells Achieved from Telomerase Haplo-Insufficient Cells by Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer

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Li-Ying Sung

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Summary: Haplo-insufficiency of telomerase genes in humans leads to telomere syndromes such as dyskeratosis congenital and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Generation of pluripotent stem cells from telomerase haplo-insufficient donor cells would provide unique opportunities toward the realization of patient-specific stem cell therapies. Recently, pluripotent human embryonic stem cells (ntESCs have been efficiently achieved by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT. We tested the hypothesis that SCNT could effectively elongate shortening telomeres of telomerase haplo-insufficient cells in the ntESCs with relevant mouse models. Indeed, telomeres of telomerase haplo-insufficient (Terc+/− mouse cells are elongated in ntESCs. Moreover, ntESCs derived from Terc+/− cells exhibit naive pluripotency as evidenced by generation of Terc+/− ntESC clone pups by tetraploid embryo complementation, the most stringent test of naive pluripotency. These data suggest that SCNT could offer a powerful tool to reprogram telomeres and to discover the factors for robust restoration of telomeres and pluripotency of telomerase haplo-insufficient somatic cells. : Sung et al. demonstrate in a mouse model that telomeres of telomerase haplo-insufficient cells can be elongated by somatic cell nuclear transfer. Moreover, ntESCs derived from Terc+/− cells exhibit pluripotency evidenced by generation of Terc+/−ntESC clone pups by tetraploid embryo complementation, the most stringent test of naive pluripotency.

Pluripotent cells display enhanced resistance to mutagenesis

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Daniel J. Cooper

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Pluripotent cells have been reported to exhibit lower frequencies of point mutations and higher levels of DNA repair than differentiated cells. This predicts that pluripotent cells are less susceptible to mutagenic exposures than differentiated cells. To test this prediction, we used a lacI mutation-reporter transgene system to assess the frequency of point mutations in multiple lines of mouse pluripotent embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent cells, as well as in multiple lines of differentiated fibroblast cells, before and after exposure to a moderate dose of the mutagen, methyl methanesulfonate. We also measured levels of key enzymes in the base excision repair (BER pathway in each cell line before and after exposure to the mutagen. Our results confirm that pluripotent cells normally maintain lower frequencies of point mutations than differentiated cells, and show that differentiated cells exhibit a large increase in mutation frequency following a moderate mutagenic exposure, whereas pluripotent cells subjected to the same exposure show no increase in mutations. This result likely reflects the higher levels of BER proteins detectable in pluripotent cells prior to exposure and supports our thesis that maintenance of enhanced genetic integrity is a fundamental characteristic of pluripotent cells.

Tetraploid Embryonic Stem Cells Maintain Pluripotency and Differentiation Potency into Three Germ Layers.

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Hiroyuki Imai

Full Text Available Polyploid amphibians and fishes occur naturally in nature, while polyploid mammals do not. For example, tetraploid mouse embryos normally develop into blastocysts, but exhibit abnormalities and die soon after implantation. Thus, polyploidization is thought to be harmful during early mammalian development. However, the mechanisms through which polyploidization disrupts development are still poorly understood. In this study, we aimed to elucidate how genome duplication affects early mammalian development. To this end, we established tetraploid embryonic stem cells (TESCs produced from the inner cell masses of tetraploid blastocysts using electrofusion of two-cell embryos in mice and studied the developmental potential of TESCs. We demonstrated that TESCs possessed essential pluripotency and differentiation potency to form teratomas, which differentiated into the three germ layers, including diploid embryonic stem cells. TESCs also contributed to the inner cell masses in aggregated chimeric blastocysts, despite the observation that tetraploid embryos fail in normal development soon after implantation in mice. In TESCs, stability after several passages, colony morphology, and alkaline phosphatase activity were similar to those of diploid ESCs. TESCs also exhibited sufficient expression and localization of pluripotent markers and retained the normal epigenetic status of relevant reprogramming factors. TESCs proliferated at a slower rate than ESCs, indicating that the difference in genomic dosage was responsible for the different growth rates. Thus, our findings suggested that mouse ESCs maintained intrinsic pluripotency and differentiation potential despite tetraploidization, providing insights into our understanding of developmental elimination in polyploid mammals.

Tetraploid Embryonic Stem Cells Maintain Pluripotency and Differentiation Potency into Three Germ Layers.

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Imai, Hiroyuki; Kano, Kiyoshi; Fujii, Wataru; Takasawa, Ken; Wakitani, Shoichi; Hiyama, Masato; Nishino, Koichiro; Kusakabe, Ken Takeshi; Kiso, Yasuo

2015-01-01

Polyploid amphibians and fishes occur naturally in nature, while polyploid mammals do not. For example, tetraploid mouse embryos normally develop into blastocysts, but exhibit abnormalities and die soon after implantation. Thus, polyploidization is thought to be harmful during early mammalian development. However, the mechanisms through which polyploidization disrupts development are still poorly understood. In this study, we aimed to elucidate how genome duplication affects early mammalian development. To this end, we established tetraploid embryonic stem cells (TESCs) produced from the inner cell masses of tetraploid blastocysts using electrofusion of two-cell embryos in mice and studied the developmental potential of TESCs. We demonstrated that TESCs possessed essential pluripotency and differentiation potency to form teratomas, which differentiated into the three germ layers, including diploid embryonic stem cells. TESCs also contributed to the inner cell masses in aggregated chimeric blastocysts, despite the observation that tetraploid embryos fail in normal development soon after implantation in mice. In TESCs, stability after several passages, colony morphology, and alkaline phosphatase activity were similar to those of diploid ESCs. TESCs also exhibited sufficient expression and localization of pluripotent markers and retained the normal epigenetic status of relevant reprogramming factors. TESCs proliferated at a slower rate than ESCs, indicating that the difference in genomic dosage was responsible for the different growth rates. Thus, our findings suggested that mouse ESCs maintained intrinsic pluripotency and differentiation potential despite tetraploidization, providing insights into our understanding of developmental elimination in polyploid mammals.

Thalidomide induces apoptosis in undifferentiated human induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Tachikawa, Saoko; Nishimura, Toshinobu; Nakauchi, Hiromitsu; Ohnuma, Kiyoshi

2017-10-01

Thalidomide, which was formerly available commercially to control the symptoms of morning sickness, is a strong teratogen that causes fetal abnormalities. However, the mechanism of thalidomide teratogenicity is not fully understood; thalidomide toxicity is not apparent in rodents, and the use of human embryos is ethically and technically untenable. In this study, we designed an experimental system featuring human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) to investigate the effects of thalidomide. These cells exhibit the same characteristics as those of epiblasts originating from implanted fertilized ova, which give rise to the fetus. Therefore, theoretically, thalidomide exposure during hiPSC differentiation is equivalent to that in the human fetus. We examined the effects of thalidomide on undifferentiated hiPSCs and early-differentiated hiPSCs cultured in media containing bone morphogenetic protein-4, which correspond, respectively, to epiblast (future fetus) and trophoblast (future extra-embryonic tissue). We found that only the number of undifferentiated cells was reduced. In undifferentiated cells, application of thalidomide increased the number of apoptotic and dead cells at day 2 but not day 4. Application of thalidomide did not affect the cell cycle. Furthermore, immunostaining and flow cytometric analysis revealed that thalidomide exposure had no effect on the expression of specific markers of undifferentiated and early trophectodermal differentiated cells. These results suggest that the effect of thalidomide was successfully detected in our experimental system and that thalidomide eliminated a subpopulation of undifferentiated hiPSCs. This study may help to elucidate the mechanisms underlying thalidomide teratogenicity and reveal potential strategies for safely prescribing this drug to pregnant women.

[CRISPR/Cas system for genome editing in pluripotent stem cells].

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Vasil'eva, E A; Melino, D; Barlev, N A

2015-01-01

Genome editing systems based on site-specific nucleases became very popular for genome editing in modern bioengineering. Human pluripotent stem cells provide a unique platform for genes function study, disease modeling, and drugs testing. Consequently, technology for fast, accurate and well controlled genome manipulation is required. CRISPR/Cas (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat/CRISPR-associated) system could be employed for these purposes. This system is based on site-specific programmable nuclease Cas9. Numerous advantages of the CRISPR/Cas system and its successful application to human stem cells provide wide opportunities for genome therapy and regeneration medicine. In this publication, we describe and compare the main genome editing systems based on site-specific programmable nucleases and discuss opportunities and perspectives of the CRISPR/Cas system for application to pluripotent stem cells.

Inhibition of Focal Adhesion Kinase Signaling by Integrin α6β1 Supports Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Self-Renewal.

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Villa-Diaz, Luis G; Kim, Jin Koo; Laperle, Alex; Palecek, Sean P; Krebsbach, Paul H

2016-07-01

Self-renewal of human embryonic stem cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs)-known as pluripotent stem cells (PSC)-is influenced by culture conditions, including the substrate on which they are grown. However, details of the molecular mechanisms interconnecting the substrate and self-renewal of these cells remain unclear. We describe a signaling pathway in hPSCs linking self-renewal and expression of pluripotency transcription factors to integrin α6β1 and inactivation of focal adhesion kinase (FAK). Disruption of this pathway results in hPSC differentiation. In hPSCs, α6β1 is the dominant integrin and FAK is not phosphorylated at Y397, and thus, it is inactive. During differentiation, integrin α6 levels diminish and Y397 FAK is phosphorylated and activated. During reprogramming of fibroblasts into iPSCs, integrin α6 is upregulated and FAK is inactivated. Knockdown of integrin α6 and activation of β1 integrin lead to FAK phosphorylation and reduction of Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2, suggesting that integrin α6 functions in inactivation of integrin β1 and FAK signaling and prevention of hPSC differentiation. The N-terminal domain of FAK, where Y397 is localized, is in the nuclei of hPSCs interacting with Oct4 and Sox2, and this immunolocalization is regulated by Oct4. hPSCs remodel the extracellular microenvironment and deposit laminin α5, the primary ligand of integrin α6β1. Knockdown of laminin α5 resulted in reduction of integrin α6 expression, phosphorylation of FAK and decreased Oct4. In conclusion, hPSCs promote the expression of integrin α6β1, and nuclear localization and inactivation of FAK to supports stem cell self-renewal. Stem Cells 2016;34:1753-1764. © 2016 AlphaMed Press.

A defined and xeno-free culture method enabling the establishment of clinical-grade human embryonic, induced pluripotent and adipose stem cells.

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Kristiina Rajala

2010-04-01

Full Text Available The growth of stem cells in in vitro conditions requires optimal balance between signals mediating cell survival, proliferation, and self-renewal. For clinical application of stem cells, the use of completely defined conditions and elimination of all animal-derived materials from the establishment, culture, and differentiation processes is desirable.Here, we report the development of a fully defined xeno-free medium (RegES, capable of supporting the expansion of human embryonic stem cells (hESC, induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC and adipose stem cells (ASC. We describe the use of the xeno-free medium in the derivation and long-term (>80 passages culture of three pluripotent karyotypically normal hESC lines: Regea 06/015, Regea 07/046, and Regea 08/013. Cardiomyocytes and neural cells differentiated from these cells exhibit features characteristic to these cell types. The same formulation of the xeno-free medium is capable of supporting the undifferentiated growth of iPSCs on human feeder cells. The characteristics of the pluripotent hESC and iPSC lines are comparable to lines derived and cultured in standard undefined culture conditions. In the culture of ASCs, the xeno-free medium provided significantly higher proliferation rates than ASCs cultured in medium containing allogeneic human serum (HS, while maintaining the differentiation potential and characteristic surface marker expression profile of ASCs, although significant differences in the surface marker expression of ASCs cultured in HS and RegES media were revealed.Our results demonstrate that human ESCs, iPSCs and ASCs can be maintained in the same defined xeno-free medium formulation for a prolonged period of time while maintaining their characteristics, demonstrating the applicability of the simplified xeno-free medium formulation for the production of clinical-grade stem cells. The basic xeno-free formulation described herein has the potential to be further optimized for specific

Rapid and efficient CRISPR/Cas9 gene inactivation in human neurons during human pluripotent stem cell differentiation and direct reprogramming.

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Rubio, Alicia; Luoni, Mirko; Giannelli, Serena G; Radice, Isabella; Iannielli, Angelo; Cancellieri, Cinzia; Di Berardino, Claudia; Regalia, Giulia; Lazzari, Giovanna; Menegon, Andrea; Taverna, Stefano; Broccoli, Vania

2016-11-18

The CRISPR/Cas9 system is a rapid and customizable tool for gene editing in mammalian cells. In particular, this approach has widely opened new opportunities for genetic studies in neurological disease. Human neurons can be differentiated in vitro from hPSC (human Pluripotent Stem Cells), hNPCs (human Neural Precursor Cells) or even directly reprogrammed from fibroblasts. Here, we described a new platform which enables, rapid and efficient CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome targeting simultaneously with three different paradigms for in vitro generation of neurons. This system was employed to inactivate two genes associated with neurological disorder (TSC2 and KCNQ2) and achieved up to 85% efficiency of gene targeting in the differentiated cells. In particular, we devised a protocol that, combining the expression of the CRISPR components with neurogenic factors, generated functional human neurons highly enriched for the desired genome modification in only 5 weeks. This new approach is easy, fast and that does not require the generation of stable isogenic clones, practice that is time consuming and for some genes not feasible.

Gene editing and clonal isolation of human induced pluripotent stem cells using CRISPR/Cas9.

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Yumlu, Saniye; Stumm, Jürgen; Bashir, Sanum; Dreyer, Anne-Kathrin; Lisowski, Pawel; Danner, Eric; Kühn, Ralf

2017-05-15

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) represent an ideal in vitro platform to study human genetics and biology. The recent advent of programmable nucleases makes also the human genome amenable to experimental genetics through either the correction of mutations in patient-derived iPSC lines or the de novo introduction of mutations into otherwise healthy iPSCs. The production of specific and sometimes complex genotypes in multiple cell lines requires efficient and streamlined gene editing technologies. In this article we provide protocols for gene editing in hiPSCs. We presently achieve high rates of gene editing at up to three loci using a modified iCRISPR system. This system includes a doxycycline inducible Cas9 and sgRNA/reporter plasmids for the enrichment of transfected cells by fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS). Here we cover the selection of target sites, vector construction, transfection, and isolation and genotyping of modified hiPSC clones. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cell adhesion monitoring of human induced pluripotent stem cell based on intrinsic molecular charges

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Sugimoto, Haruyo; Sakata, Toshiya

2014-01-01

We have shown a simple way for real-time, quantitative, non-invasive, and non-label monitoring of human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell adhesion by use of a biologically coupled-gate field effect transistor (bio-FET), which is based on detection of molecular charges at cell membrane. The electrical behavior revealed quantitatively the electrical contacts of integrin-receptor at the cell membrane with RGDS peptide immobilized at the gate sensing surface, because that binding site was based on cationic α chain of integrin. The platform based on the bio-FET would provide substantial information to evaluate cell/material bio-interface and elucidate biding mechanism of adhesion molecules, which could not be interpreted by microscopic observation.

Anti-addiction Drug Ibogaine Prolongs the Action Potential in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes.

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Rubi, Lena; Eckert, Daniel; Boehm, Stefan; Hilber, Karlheinz; Koenig, Xaver

2017-04-01

Ibogaine is a plant alkaloid used as anti-addiction drug in dozens of alternative medicine clinics worldwide. Recently, alarming reports of life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias and cases of sudden death associated with the ingestion of ibogaine have accumulated. Using whole-cell patch clamp recordings, we assessed the effects of ibogaine and its main metabolite noribogaine on action potentials in human ventricular-like cardiomyocytes derived from induced pluripotent stem cells. Therapeutic concentrations of ibogaine and its long-lived active metabolite noribogaine significantly retarded action potential repolarization in human cardiomyocytes. These findings represent the first experimental proof that ibogaine application entails a cardiac arrhythmia risk for humans. In addition, they explain the clinically observed delayed incidence of cardiac adverse events several days after ibogaine intake. We conclude that therapeutic concentrations of ibogaine retard action potential repolarization in the human heart. This may give rise to a prolongation of the QT interval in the electrocardiogram and cardiac arrhythmias.

In vitro model of cerebral ischemia by using brain microvascular endothelial cells derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Kokubu, Yasuhiro; Yamaguchi, Tomoko; Kawabata, Kenji

2017-04-29

Brain-derived microvascular endothelial cells (BMECs), which play a central role in blood brain barrier (BBB), can be used for the evaluation of drug transport into the brain. Although human BMEC cell lines have already been reported, they lack original properties such as barrier integrity. Pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) can be used for various applications such as regenerative therapy, drug screening, and pathological study. In the recent study, an induction method of BMECs from PSCs has been established, making it possible to more precisely study the in vitro human BBB function. Here, using induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell-derived BMECs, we examined the effects of oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) and OGD/reoxygenation (OGD/R) on BBB permeability. OGD disrupted the barrier function, and the dysfunction was rapidly restored by re-supply of the oxygen and glucose. Interestingly, TNF-α, which is known to be secreted from astrocytes and microglia in the cerebral ischemia, prevented the restoration of OGD-induced barrier dysfunction in an apoptosis-independent manner. Thus, we could establish the in vitro BBB disease model that mimics the cerebral ischemia by using iPS cell-derived BMECs. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A universal system for highly efficient cardiac differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells that eliminates interline variability.

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Paul W Burridge

2011-04-01

Full Text Available The production of cardiomyocytes from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC holds great promise for patient-specific cardiotoxicity drug testing, disease modeling, and cardiac regeneration. However, existing protocols for the differentiation of hiPSC to the cardiac lineage are inefficient and highly variable. We describe a highly efficient system for differentiation of human embryonic stem cells (hESC and hiPSC to the cardiac lineage. This system eliminated the variability in cardiac differentiation capacity of a variety of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC, including hiPSC generated from CD34(+ cord blood using non-viral, non-integrating methods.We systematically and rigorously optimized >45 experimental variables to develop a universal cardiac differentiation system that produced contracting human embryoid bodies (hEB with an improved efficiency of 94.7±2.4% in an accelerated nine days from four hESC and seven hiPSC lines tested, including hiPSC derived from neonatal CD34(+ cord blood and adult fibroblasts using non-integrating episomal plasmids. This cost-effective differentiation method employed forced aggregation hEB formation in a chemically defined medium, along with staged exposure to physiological (5% oxygen, and optimized concentrations of mesodermal morphogens BMP4 and FGF2, polyvinyl alcohol, serum, and insulin. The contracting hEB derived using these methods were composed of high percentages (64-89% of cardiac troponin I(+ cells that displayed ultrastructural properties of functional cardiomyocytes and uniform electrophysiological profiles responsive to cardioactive drugs.This efficient and cost-effective universal system for cardiac differentiation of hiPSC allows a potentially unlimited production of functional cardiomyocytes suitable for application to hPSC-based drug development, cardiac disease modeling, and the future generation of clinically-safe nonviral human cardiac cells for regenerative medicine.

Regional differentiation of retinoic acid-induced human pluripotent embryonic carcinoma stem cell neurons.

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Dennis E Coyle

Full Text Available The NTERA2 cl D1 (NT2 cell line, derived from human teratocarcinoma, exhibits similar properties as embryonic stem (ES cells or very early neuroepithelial progenitors. NT2 cells can be induced to become postmitotic central nervous system neurons (NT2N with retinoic acid. Although neurons derived from pluripotent cells, such as NT2N, have been characterized for their neurotransmitter phenotypes, their potential suitability as a donor source for neural transplantation also depends on their ability to respond to localized environmental cues from a specific region of the CNS. Therefore, our study aimed to characterize the regional transcription factors that define the rostocaudal and dorsoventral identity of NT2N derived from a monolayer differentiation paradigm using quantitative PCR (qPCR. Purified NT2N mainly expressed both GABAergic and glutamatergic phenotypes and were electrically active but did not form functional synapses. The presence of immature astrocytes and possible radial glial cells was noted. The NT2N expressed a regional transcription factor code consistent with forebrain, hindbrain and spinal cord neural progenitors but showed minimal expression of midbrain phenotypes. In the dorsoventral plane NT2N expressed both dorsal and ventral neural progenitors. Of major interest was that even under the influence of retinoic acid, a known caudalization factor, the NT2N population maintained a rostral phenotype subpopulation which expressed cortical regional transcription factors. It is proposed that understanding the regional differentiation bias of neurons derived from pluripotent stem cells will facilitate their successful integration into existing neuronal networks within the CNS.

Comparative transcriptomic analysis of endothelial progenitor cells derived from umbilical cord blood and adult peripheral blood: Implications for the generation of induced pluripotent stem cells

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Xiugong Gao

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs offer the potential to generate tissues with ethnic diversity enabling toxicity testing on selected populations. Recently, it has been reported that endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs derived from umbilical cord blood (CB or adult peripheral blood (PB afford a practical and efficient cellular substrate for iPSC generation. However, differences between EPCs from different blood sources have rarely been studied. In the current study, we derived EPCs from blood mononuclear cells (MNCs and reprogrammed EPCs into iPSCs. We also explored differences between CB-EPCs and PB-EPCs at the molecular and cellular levels through a combination of transcriptomic analysis and cell biology techniques. EPC colonies in CB-MNCs emerged 5–7 days earlier, were 3-fold higher in number, and consistently larger in size than in PB-MNCs. Similarly, iPSC colonies generated from CB-EPCs was 2.5-fold higher in number than from PB-EPCs, indicating CB-EPCs have a higher reprogramming efficiency than PB-EPCs. Transcriptomic analysis using microarrays found a total of 1133 genes differentially expressed in CB-EPCs compared with PB-EPCs, with 675 genes upregulated and 458 downregulated. Several canonical pathways were impacted, among which the human embryonic stem cell pluripotency pathway was of particular interest. The differences in the gene expression pattern between CB-EPCs and PB-EPCs provide a molecular basis for the discrepancies seen in their derivation and reprogramming efficiencies, and highlight the advantages of using CB as the cellular source for the generation of iPSCs and their derivative tissues for ethnic-related toxicological applications.

Comparative transcriptomic analysis of endothelial progenitor cells derived from umbilical cord blood and adult peripheral blood: Implications for the generation of induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Gao, Xiugong; Yourick, Jeffrey J; Sprando, Robert L

2017-12-01

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) offer the potential to generate tissues with ethnic diversity enabling toxicity testing on selected populations. Recently, it has been reported that endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) derived from umbilical cord blood (CB) or adult peripheral blood (PB) afford a practical and efficient cellular substrate for iPSC generation. However, differences between EPCs from different blood sources have rarely been studied. In the current study, we derived EPCs from blood mononuclear cells (MNCs) and reprogrammed EPCs into iPSCs. We also explored differences between CB-EPCs and PB-EPCs at the molecular and cellular levels through a combination of transcriptomic analysis and cell biology techniques. EPC colonies in CB-MNCs emerged 5-7days earlier, were 3-fold higher in number, and consistently larger in size than in PB-MNCs. Similarly, iPSC colonies generated from CB-EPCs was 2.5-fold higher in number than from PB-EPCs, indicating CB-EPCs have a higher reprogramming efficiency than PB-EPCs. Transcriptomic analysis using microarrays found a total of 1133 genes differentially expressed in CB-EPCs compared with PB-EPCs, with 675 genes upregulated and 458 downregulated. Several canonical pathways were impacted, among which the human embryonic stem cell pluripotency pathway was of particular interest. The differences in the gene expression pattern between CB-EPCs and PB-EPCs provide a molecular basis for the discrepancies seen in their derivation and reprogramming efficiencies, and highlight the advantages of using CB as the cellular source for the generation of iPSCs and their derivative tissues for ethnic-related toxicological applications. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Ground rules of the pluripotency gene regulatory network.

KAUST Repository

Li, Mo

2017-01-03

Pluripotency is a state that exists transiently in the early embryo and, remarkably, can be recapitulated in vitro by deriving embryonic stem cells or by reprogramming somatic cells to become induced pluripotent stem cells. The state of pluripotency, which is stabilized by an interconnected network of pluripotency-associated genes, integrates external signals and exerts control over the decision between self-renewal and differentiation at the transcriptional, post-transcriptional and epigenetic levels. Recent evidence of alternative pluripotency states indicates the regulatory flexibility of this network. Insights into the underlying principles of the pluripotency network may provide unprecedented opportunities for studying development and for regenerative medicine.

Ground rules of the pluripotency gene regulatory network.

KAUST Repository

Li, Mo; Belmonte, Juan Carlos Izpisua

2017-01-01

Pluripotency is a state that exists transiently in the early embryo and, remarkably, can be recapitulated in vitro by deriving embryonic stem cells or by reprogramming somatic cells to become induced pluripotent stem cells. The state of pluripotency, which is stabilized by an interconnected network of pluripotency-associated genes, integrates external signals and exerts control over the decision between self-renewal and differentiation at the transcriptional, post-transcriptional and epigenetic levels. Recent evidence of alternative pluripotency states indicates the regulatory flexibility of this network. Insights into the underlying principles of the pluripotency network may provide unprecedented opportunities for studying development and for regenerative medicine.

Cell Type-Specific Chromatin Signatures Underline Regulatory DNA Elements in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells and Somatic Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Ming-Tao; Shao, Ning-Yi; Hu, Shijun; Ma, Ning; Srinivasan, Rajini; Jahanbani, Fereshteh; Lee, Jaecheol; Zhang, Sophia L; Snyder, Michael P; Wu, Joseph C

2017-11-10

Regulatory DNA elements in the human genome play important roles in determining the transcriptional abundance and spatiotemporal gene expression during embryonic heart development and somatic cell reprogramming. It is not well known how chromatin marks in regulatory DNA elements are modulated to establish cell type-specific gene expression in the human heart. We aimed to decipher the cell type-specific epigenetic signatures in regulatory DNA elements and how they modulate heart-specific gene expression. We profiled genome-wide transcriptional activity and a variety of epigenetic marks in the regulatory DNA elements using massive RNA-seq (n=12) and ChIP-seq (chromatin immunoprecipitation combined with high-throughput sequencing; n=84) in human endothelial cells (CD31 + CD144 + ), cardiac progenitor cells (Sca-1 + ), fibroblasts (DDR2 + ), and their respective induced pluripotent stem cells. We uncovered 2 classes of regulatory DNA elements: class I was identified with ubiquitous enhancer (H3K4me1) and promoter (H3K4me3) marks in all cell types, whereas class II was enriched with H3K4me1 and H3K4me3 in a cell type-specific manner. Both class I and class II regulatory elements exhibited stimulatory roles in nearby gene expression in a given cell type. However, class I promoters displayed more dominant regulatory effects on transcriptional abundance regardless of distal enhancers. Transcription factor network analysis indicated that human induced pluripotent stem cells and somatic cells from the heart selected their preferential regulatory elements to maintain cell type-specific gene expression. In addition, we validated the function of these enhancer elements in transgenic mouse embryos and human cells and identified a few enhancers that could possibly regulate the cardiac-specific gene expression. Given that a large number of genetic variants associated with human diseases are located in regulatory DNA elements, our study provides valuable resources for deciphering

Nerve growth factor promotes human hemopoietic colony growth and differentiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matsuda, H.; Coughlin, M.D.; Bienenstock, J.; Denburg, J.A.

1988-01-01

Nerve growth factor (NGF) is a neurotropic polypeptide necessary for the survival and growth of some central neurons, as well as sensory afferent and sympathetic neurons. Much is now known of the structural and functional characteristics of NGF, whose gene has recently been clones. Since it is synthesized in largest amounts by the male mouse submandibular gland, its role exclusively in nerve growth is questionable. These experiments indicate that NGF causes a significant stimulation of granulocyte colonies grown from human peripheral blood in standard hemopoietic methylcellulose assays. Further, NGF appears to act in a relatively selective fashion to induce the differentiation of eosinophils and basophils/mast cells. Depletion experiments show that the NGF effect may be T-cell dependent and that NGF augments the colony-stimulating effect of supernatants from the leukemic T-cell (Mo) line. The hemopoietic activity of NGF is blocked by 125 I-polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies to NGF. The authors conclude that NGF may indirectly act as a local growth factor in tissues other than those of the nervous system by causing T cells to synthesize or secrete molecules with colony-stimulating activity. In view of the synthesis of NGF in tissue injury, the involvement of basophils/mast cells and eosinophils in allergic and other inflammatory processes, and the association of mast cells with fibrosis and tissue repair, they postulate that NGF plays an important biological role in a variety of repair processes

Computational Biology Methods for Characterization of Pluripotent Cells.