SCUBE1, a novel developmental gene involved in renal regeneration and repair.

Background: We have identified that a novel developmental gene and protein, SCUBE1, is expressed in endothelial cells and may play an important role in kidney regeneration.

Methods: The temporal and spatial expression of SCUBE1 was determined in a mouse model of ischaemia-reperfusion (IR) injury at 3 days and 1, 3 and 6 weeks post-injury by immunofluorescence microscopy. In vitro analysis was used to examine SCUBE1 signalling in endothelial cells under conditions of cell stress using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and immunofluorescence labelling.

Neural differentiation of human embryonic stem cells.

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are pluripotent and capable of indefinite self-renewal in vitro. These features make them a highly advantageous source for deriving any cell type of the central and peripheral nervous system. We describe neural induction of human (h)ESCs, by using the bone morphogenic protein inhibitor protein noggin.

Transcriptional analysis of early lineage commitment in human embryonic stem cells.

Background: The mechanisms responsible for the maintenance of pluripotency in human embryonic stem cells, and those that drive their commitment into particular differentiation lineages, are poorly understood. In fact, even our knowledge of the phenotype of hESC is limited, because the immunological and molecular criteria presently used to define this phenotype describe the properties of a heterogeneous population of cells.

Results: We used a novel approach combining immunological and transcriptional analysis (immunotranscriptional profiling) to compare gene expression in hESC populations at very early stages of differentiation.

Transcriptional control of pluripotency: decisions in early development.

The pathways controlling the maintenance and loss of pluripotency in cells of the early embryo regulate the formation of the tissues that will support development. Several transcription factors have been identified as being integral to the establishment and/or maintenance of pluripotency, coordinately regulating the expression of genes within pluripotent cells and acting as gene targets of these same processes. Recent advances in understanding the transcriptional regulation of these factors have revealed differences in the transcriptional complexes present within sub-populations of the pluripotent lineage and in the mechanisms regulating the loss of pluripotency on differentiation.

CD30 is a survival factor and a biomarker for transformed human pluripotent stem cells.

The application of human embryonic stem (hES) cells in regenerative medicine will require rigorous quality control measures to ensure the safety of hES cell-derived grafts. During propagation in vitro, hES cells can acquire cytogenetic abnormalities as well as submicroscopic genetic lesions, such as small amplifications or deletions. Many of the genetic abnormalities that arise in hES cell cultures are also implicated in human cancer development.