Transcription factor SOX15 regulates stem cell pluripotency and promotes neural fate during differentiation by activating the neurogenic gene Hes5.

SOX2 and SOX15 are Sox family transcription factors enriched in embryonic stem cells (ESCs). The role of SOX2 in activating gene expression programs essential for stem cell self-renewal and acquisition of pluripotency during somatic cell reprogramming is well-documented. However, the contribution of SOX15 to these processes is unclear and often presumed redundant with SOX2 largely because overexpression of SOX15 can partially restore self-renewal in SOX2-deficient ESCs.

ATP-binding cassette protein ABCF1 couples transcription and genome surveillance in embryonic stem cells through low-complexity domain.

OCT4 and SOX2 confer pluripotency by recruiting coactivators to activate stem cell–specific transcription. However, the composition of coactivator complexes and their roles in maintaining stem cell fidelity remain unclear. Here, we report the ATP-binding cassette subfamily F member 1 (ABCF1) as a coactivator for OCT4/SOX2 critical for stem cell self-renewal.

The brown algae Pl.LSU/2 group II intron-encoded protein has functional reverse transcriptase and maturase activities.

Group II introns are self-splicing mobile elements found in prokaryotes and eukaryotic organelles. These introns propagate by homing into precise genomic locations, following assembly of a ribonucleoprotein complex containing the intron-encoded protein (IEP) and the spliced intron RNA. Engineered group II introns are now commonly used tools for targeted genomic modifications in prokaryotes but not in eukaryotes.