Intrinsic transition of embryonic stem-cell differentiation into neural progenitors

The neural fate is generally considered to be the intrinsic direction of embryonic stem (ES) cell differentiation. However, little is known about the intracellular mechanism that leads undifferentiated cells to adopt the neural fate in the absence of extrinsic inductive signals. Here we show that the zinc-finger nuclear protein Zfp521 is essential and sufficient for driving the intrinsic neural differentiation of mouse ES cells. In the absence of the neural differentiation inhibitor BMP4, strong Zfp521 expression is intrinsically induced in differentiating ES cells. Forced expression of Zfp521 enables the neural conversion of ES cells even in the presence of BMP4. Conversely, in differentiation culture, Zfp521-depleted ES cells do not undergo neural conversion but tend to halt at the epiblast state. Zfp521 directly activates early neural genes by working with the co-activator p300. Thus, the transition of ES cell differentiation from the epiblast state into neuroectodermal progenitors specifically depends on the cell-intrinsic expression and activator function of Zfp521.     

Isolation and analysis of SSEA-4 positive cells derived from fetal marrow mesenchymal stem cells

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can be differentiatedinto bone, cartilage, adipocyte and some other tissue cells following induction and they are good seed cells in cell therapy and tissue engineering fields. Human fetal mesenchymal stem cells (fMSCs), de- …     

Myeloid leukaemia inhibitory factor maintains the developmental potential of embryonic stem cells

Embryonic stem (ES) cells, the totipotent outgrowths of blastocysts, can be cultured and manipulated in vitro and then returned to the embryonic environment where they develop normally and can contribute to all cell lineages. Maintenance of the stem-cell phenotype in vitro requires the presence of a feeder layer of fibroblasts or of a soluble factor, differentiation inhibitory activity (DIA) produced by a number of sources; in the absence of DIA the ES cells differentiate into a wide variety of cell types. We recently noted several similarities between partially purified DIA and a haemopoietic regulator, myeloid leukaemia inhibitory factor (LIF), a molecule which induces differentiation in M1 myeloid leukaemic cells and which we have recently purified, cloned and characterized. We demonstrate here that purified, recombinant LIF can substitute for DIA in the maintenance of totipotent ES cell lines that retain the potential to form chimaeric mice.     

离心洗脱法在Rb蛋白与细胞分化关系研究中的应用

离心洗脱技术可分离到ＨＬ６０细胞周期中同步的Ｇ０／Ｇ１期细胞，被视黄酸诱导的Ｇ０／Ｇ１细胞可以进行一个正常的细胞周期，Ｒｂ蛋白磷酸化平随细胞周期而变化，但不能进入第二个细胞周期，细胞开始分化，Ｒｂ蛋白磷化水平的降低，是由于ＲＡ首先诱导细胞分化，使细胞生长停止，分化的细胞失去磷酸化蛋白能力的结果。     

人生长激素基因转化的小鼠胚胎干细胞特性的研究

报道了携带人生长激素基因（ｈＧＨ）的逆转录病毒载体ｐＩＮＳ－ＧＨ导入小鼠胚胎干细胞（ＥＳ细胞）ＣＣＥ后，虽然用放射免疫法未检测到ｈＧＨ基因的表达，但是，Ｓｏｕｔｈｅｒｎ杂交的结果表明，ｈＧＨ基因的确已经整合到细胞基因组中。对转化的ＥＳ细胞克隆进行了体内外分化能力及嵌合能力的检验，结果表明，经过一系列体外操作的ＥＳ细胞，仍具有分化成多种细胞类型的能力。转化的ＥＳ细胞通过显微注射注入囊胚后，能参与受体     

Properties and applications of embryonic stem cells

Mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells are pluripotent cells derived from the early embryo and can be propagated stably in undifferentiated state in vitro. They retain the ability to differentiate into all cell types found in the embryonic and adult body in vivo, and can be induced to differentiate into many cell types under appropriate culture conditions in vitro. Using these properties, people have set up various differentiated systems of many cell types and tissues in vitro. Through analysis of these systems, one can identify novel bioactive factors and reveal mechanisms of cell differentiation and organogenesis. ES cell-derived differentiated cells can also be applied to cell transplantation therapy. In addition, we summarized the features and potential applications of human ES cells.     

用大鼠心肌条件培养基建立来源于C57BL/6J小鼠的ES细胞系

报道一种新的建立C57BL/6J小鼠ES细胞系的方法。采用大鼠心肌条件培养基,在不使用饲养层细胞和白血病抑制因子(LIF)的情况下,从C57BL/6J品系小鼠中建成1个ES细胞系即MESPU 41,成系率为1.0%。MESPU 41细胞为XX型,核型正常率高达89%,表现出XX型ES细胞系少有的稳定性。进行体内分化实验时MESPU 41细胞能发生广泛分化形成畸胎瘤。嵌合体制作实验证实MESPU 41细胞具有嵌合能力,能参与胚胎的发育。采用RT-PCR方法,检测出大鼠心肌细胞有LIF mRNA的表达,这可能与其条件培养基保持ES细胞未分化状态并使X染色体稳定有关。同时,还对大鼠心肌细胞进行了永生化的尝试,共得到了4个永生化克隆,这将进一步简化ES细胞建系和培养工作,为进一步研究ES细胞在体外培养过程中的稳定性开创了新的起点。     

The molecular mechanism of embryonic stem cell pluripotency maintenance

In vitro cultured embryonic stem （ES） cells are derived from the inner cell mass （ICM） of pre-implantation embryos, and are capable of giving rise to all cell and tissue types of the three germ layers upon being injected back into blastocysts. These ceils are therefore said to possess pluripotency that can be maintained infinitely in culture under optimal conditions. Such pluripotency maintenance is believed to be due to the symmetrical cleavage of the cells in an undifferentiated state. The pluripotency of ES cells is the basis for their various practical and potential applications. ES cells can be used as donor cells to generate knockout or transgenic animals, as in vitro models of mammalian development, and as cell resources for cell therapy in regenerative medicine. The further success in these applications, particularly in the last two, is dependent on the establishment of a culture system with components in the medium clearly defined and the subsequent procedures for controlled differentiation of the cells into specific lineages. In turn, elucidating the molecular mechanism for pluripotency maintenance of ES cells is the prerequisite. This paper summarizes the recent progresses in this area, focusing mainly on the LIF/STAT3, BMPs/Smads, canonical Wnt, TGFβ/activin/nodal, PI3K and FGF signaling pathways and the genes such as oct4, nanog that are crucial in ES cell pluripotency maintenance. The regulatory systems of pluripotency maintenance in both mouse and human ES cells are also discussed. We believe that the cross-talkings between these signaling pathways, as well as the regulatory system underlying pluripotency maintenance will be the main focus in the area of ES cell researches in the future.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">In vitro</Emphasis> induction of mouse meningeal-derived ips cells into neural-like cells

Previous research has shown that mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells can be induced to form neural cells in adherent monocultures. In this study, pluripotent stem (iPS) C5 cells derived from meningeal membranes were converted successfully into neural-like cells using the same protocol generally used for ES cells. Meningeal-iPS C5 cells were induced to express neural markers Sox1, Sox3, Pax6, Nestin and Tuj1 and to reduce the expression of ES markers Oct4 and Nanog during neural differentiation, and can be differentiated into Pax6 and Nestin positive neural progenitors, and further into neuronal, astrocytic, and oligodendrocytic cells. In vitro differentiation of iPS cells into patient-specific neural cells could serve as a model to study mechanisms of genetic diseases and develop promising candidates for therapeutic applications in dysfunctional or aging neural tissues. Meningeal cells express a high level of the embryonic master regulator Sox2, allowing them to be reprogrammed into iPS cells more easily than other somatic cells.     

6个小鼠ES细胞系的建立和鉴定

报道从小鼠129/ter品系中建成6个胚胎干细胞系,经过核型检查,体内、体外分化等鉴定后发现,6个细胞系中有2个细胞系是正常二倍体,其中ES细胞系MESPU 13为XY型,其核骨架蛋白质成分相当于3～4d(天)的鼠胚细胞的核骨架成分,可长期维持二倍体未分化状态,并具有高效的嵌合能力。核型不正常的细胞系所形成的畸胎瘤生长较快,但细胞的分化程度与核型正常的ES细胞有所不同。对影响建系结果的各种因素进行了讨论。     

Nanog promotes transfer of pluripotency after cell fusion

Through cell fusion, embryonic stem (ES) cells can erase the developmental programming of differentiated cell nuclei and impose pluripotency. Molecules that mediate this conversion should be identifiable in ES cells. One candidate is the variant homeodomain protein Nanog, which has the capacity to entrain undifferentiated ES cell propagation. Here we report that in fusions between ES cells and neural stem (NS) cells, increased levels of Nanog stimulate pluripotent gene activation from the somatic cell genome and enable an up to 200-fold increase in the recovery of hybrid colonies, all of which show ES cell characteristics. Nanog also improves hybrid yield when thymocytes or fibroblasts are fused to ES cells; however, fewer colonies are obtained than from ES x NS cell fusions, consistent with a hierarchical susceptibility to reprogramming among somatic cell types. Notably, for NS x ES cell fusions elevated Nanog enables primary hybrids to develop into ES cell colonies with identical frequency to homotypic ES x ES fusion products. This means that in hybrids, increased Nanog is sufficient for the NS cell epigenome to be reset completely to a state of pluripotency. We conclude that Nanog can orchestrate ES cell machinery to instate pluripotency with an efficiency of up to 100% depending on the differentiation status of the somatic cell.     

Derivation of androgenetic embryonic stem cells from m-carboxycinnamic acid bishydroxamide (CBHA) treated androgenetic embryos

The androgenetic embyronic stem (aES) cells are useful models in studying the effects of imprinted genes on pluripotency maintaining and embryo development. The expression patterns of imprinted genes are significantly different between uniparental derived aES cells and zygote-derived embryonic stem (ES) cells, therefore, the imprinting related cell pluripotency needs further exploitation. Several approaches have been applied in generation of androgenetic embryos and derivation of aES cell lines. Here, we describe a method to generate androgenetic embryos by injecting two mature sperms into one enucleated oocyte. Then these androgenetic embryos were treated with a histone deacetylase inhibitor: m-carboxycinnamic acid bishydroxamide (CBHA). Further, aES cell lines were successfully derived from these treated androgenetic embryos at blastocyst stage. The CBHA could improve not only the quality of androgenetic embryos, but also the efficiencies of aES (CaES) cells derivation and chimeric mice generation. The imprinted gene expression pattern in the CBHA treated embryo-derived aES (CaES) cells was also highly similar to that of zygote-derived ES cells.     

兔ES样细胞系的建立及其特性分析

报道从２３７枚家兔胚胎中建成７个可连续传代的ＥＳ样细胞系。建系条件为，使用小鼠原始胚胎成纤维细胞（ＭＥ）作饲养层，以含１０％胎年血清和１０％兔血清的ＤＭＥＭ／Ｆ１２为培养基，添加白血病抑制因子（ＬＩＦ）或上皮生长因子（ＥＧＦ），胚龄为９０，９６ｈ。该细胞系的细胞。在许多方面类似于小鼠ＥＳ细胞，具干细胞的形态特征，呈集落型生长，可连续传代并保持其形态特征，具有一定的自发分化和诱导分化的能力，悬浮培养     

Generation of tetraploid complementation mice from embryonic stem cells cultured with chemical defined medium

Mouse embryonic stem cells(mESCs)derived from inner cell mass(ICM)of pre-implantation embryos,can maintain undifferentiated state when cultured in N2B27 medium supplemented with GSK3inhibitor CHIR99021 and MEK inhibitor PD0325901(‘‘2i’’)and leukemia inhibitor factor(LIF).Compare to conventional culture medium,all components of this medium are defined.With the N2B27 medium,‘‘2i’’and LIF,mESCs can contribute to the germline of the chimeric embryos,however,whether the‘‘all-ES cells’’mice can been generated by tetraploid complementation is unclear yet,while the tetraploid complementation serve as a golden standard to assess the pluripotency of ES cells.Here,our study showed that mESCs derived and cultured with the N2B27 complete medium could generate fertile mice by tetraploid complementation.In addition,the survival rate of tetraploid complementation mice produced by inbred mES cell lines is higher than the conventional culture condition,and increased the percentage of Oct4 positive cells contrast to conventional medium either.Therefore,the N2B27 medium supplemented with‘‘2i’’and LIF is an alternative choice forthe derivation and long-term culture of mouse embryonic stem cells.     

全反式维甲酸对脐血红系祖细胞增殖过程中HOXB6基因表达的影响

探讨脐血造血干祖细胞向红系增殖过程中HOXB6 mRNA表达及全反式维甲酸对HOXB6 mRNA表达的影响.采用体外培养技术,以全反式维甲酸持续干扰造血干祖细胞,观察集落生成情况,采用实时荧光定量PCR技术检测造血祖细胞增殖分化过程中HOXB6基因的表达水平,用DNA相对拷贝数和RNA表达相对量表示HOXB6基因相对表达量.结果表明,人类造血干祖细胞向红系祖细胞增殖分化过程中,各祖细胞HOXB6基因均表达,与正常对照组比较,全反式维甲酸可上调HOXB6基因的表达,说明HOXB6可能是造血干祖细胞向红系祖细胞正常增殖分化过程中的调控基因之一.