Different Concentrations of FGF Ligands, FGF2 or FGF8 Determine Distinct States of WNT-Induced Presomitic Mesoderm.

Presomitic mesoderm (PSM) cells are the precursors of the somites, which flank both sides of the neural tube and give rise to the musculo-skeletal system shaping the vertebrate body. WNT and FGF signaling control the formation of both the PSM and the somites and show a graded distribution with highest levels in the posterior PSM. We have used reporters for the mesoderm/PSM control genes T, Tbx6, and Msgn1 to investigate the differentiation of mouse ESCs from the naïve state via EpiSCs to PSM cells.