Direct Reprogramming of Human Primordial Germ Cells into Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells: Efficient Generation of Genetically Engineered Germ Cells.

Primordial germ cells (PGCs) share many properties with embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and innately express several key pluripotency-controlling factors, including OCT4, NANOG, and LIN28. Therefore, PGCs may provide a simple and efficient model for studying somatic cell reprogramming to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), especially in determining the regulatory mechanisms that fundamentally define pluripotency. Here, we report a novel model of PGC reprogramming to generate iPSCs via transfection with SOX2 and OCT4 using integrative lentiviral.

Generation of glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor protein-deficient blood cells from human induced pluripotent stem cells.

PIG-A is an X-linked gene required for the biosynthesis of glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchors; thus, PIG-A mutant cells have a deficiency or absence of all GPI-anchored proteins (GPI-APs). Acquired mutations in hematopoietic stem cells result in the disease paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria, and hypomorphic germline PIG-A mutations lead to severe developmental abnormalities, seizures, and early death. Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) can differentiate into cell types derived from all three germ layers, providing a novel developmental system for modeling human diseases.

Differential sensitivity to JAK inhibitory drugs by isogenic human erythroblasts and hematopoietic progenitors generated from patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells.

Disease-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) provide an unprecedented opportunity to establish novel disease models and accelerate drug development using distinct tissue target cells generated from isogenic iPSC lines with and without disease-causing mutations. To realize the potential of iPSCs in modeling acquired diseases which are usually heterogeneous, we have generated multiple iPSC lines including two lines that are JAK2-wild-type and four lines homozygous for JAK2-V617F somatic mutation from a single polycythemia vera (PV) patient blood. In vitro differentiation of the same patient-derived iPSC lines have demonstrated the differential contributions of their parental hematopoietic clones to the abnormal erythropoiesis including the formation of endogenous erythroid colonies.

HMGA1 reprograms somatic cells into pluripotent stem cells by inducing stem cell transcriptional networks.

Background: Although recent studies have identified genes expressed in human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) that induce pluripotency, the molecular underpinnings of normal stem cell function remain poorly understood. The high mobility group A1 (HMGA1) gene is highly expressed in hESCs and poorly differentiated, stem-like cancers; however, its role in these settings has been unclear.

Methods/principal Findings: We show that HMGA1 is highly expressed in fully reprogrammed iPSCs and hESCs, with intermediate levels in ECCs and low levels in fibroblasts.

The phenotype of a germline mutation in PIGA: the gene somatically mutated in paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria.

Phosphatidylinositol glycan class A (PIGA) is involved in the first step of glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) biosynthesis. Many proteins, including CD55 and CD59, are anchored to the cell by GPI. Loss of CD55 and CD59 on erythrocytes causes complement-mediated lysis in paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH), a disease that manifests after clonal expansion of hematopoietic cells with somatic PIGA mutations.

Efficient derivation and genetic modifications of human pluripotent stem cells on engineered human feeder cell lines.

Derivation of pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) induced from somatic cell types and the subsequent genetic modifications of disease-specific or patient-specific iPSCs are crucial steps in their applications for disease modeling as well as future cell and gene therapies. Conventional procedures of these processes require co-culture with primary mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) to support self-renewal and clonal growth of human iPSCs as well as embryonic stem cells (ESCs). However, the variability of MEF quality affects the efficiencies of all these steps.

Hematopoietic cells as sources for patient-specific iPSCs and disease modeling.

In addition to being an attractive source for cell replacement therapy, human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) also have great potential for disease modeling and drug development. During the recent several years, cell reprogramming technologies have evolved to generate virus-free and integration-free human iPSCs from easily accessible sources such as patient skin fibroblasts and peripheral blood samples. Hematopoietic cells from umbilical cord blood banks and Epstein Barr virus (EBV) immortalized B lymphocyte repositories represent alternative sources for human genetic materials of diverse backgrounds.

Bone morphogenetic protein 4 mediates human embryonic germ cell derivation.

Human primordial germ cells (PGCs) have proven to be a source of pluripotent stem cells called embryonic germ cells (EGCs). Unlike embryonic stem cells, virtually little is known regarding the factors that regulate EGC survival and maintenance. In mice, the growth factor bone morphogenetic protein 4 (BMP4) has been shown to be required for maintaining mouse embryonic stem cells, and disruptions in this gene lead to defects in mouse PGC specification.

MicroRNA expression profiling of oligodendrocyte differentiation from human embryonic stem cells.

Background: Cells of the oligodendrocyte (OL) lineage play a vital role in the production and maintenance of myelin, a multilamellar membrane which allows for saltatory conduction along axons. These cells may provide immense therapeutic potential for lost sensory and motor function in demyelinating conditions, such as spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis, and transverse myelitis. However, the molecular mechanisms controlling OL differentiation are largely unknown.