Teratoma formation by human embryonic stem cells is site dependent and enhanced by the presence of Matrigel

The role of YAP transcription coactivator in regulating stem cell self-renewal and differentiation

Yes-associated protein (YAP) is a potent transcription coactivator acting via binding to the TEAD transcription factor, and plays a critical role in organ size regulation. YAP is phosphorylated and inhibited by the Lats kinase, a key component of the Hippo tumor suppressor pathway. Elevated YAP protein levels and gene amplification have been implicated in human cancer. In this study, we report that YAP is inactivated during embryonic stem (ES) cell differentiation, as indicated by decreased protein levels and increased phosphorylation. Consistently, YAP is elevated during induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell reprogramming. YAP knockdown leads to a loss of ES cell pluripotency, while ectopic expression of YAP prevents ES cell differentiation in vitro and maintains stem cell phenotypes even under differentiation conditions. Moreover, YAP binds directly to promoters of a large number of genes known to be important for stem cells and stimulates their expression. Our observations establish a critical role of YAP in maintaining stem cell pluripotency.

Folate antagonist, methotrexate induces neuronal differentiation of human embryonic stem cells transplanted into nude mouse retina

Transplanted embryonic stem (ES) cells can be integrated into the retinas of adult mice as well-differentiated neuroretinal cells. However, the transplanted ES cells also have a tumorigenic activity as they have the ability for multipotent differentiation to various types of tissues. In the present study, human ES (hES) cells were transplanted into adult nude mouse retinas by intravitreal injections 20 h after intravitreal N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) administration. After the transplantation of hES cells, the folate antagonist, methotrexate (MTX) was administrated in order to control the differentiation of the transplanted hES cells. Neuronal differentiation and teratogenic potential of hES cells were examined immunohistochemically 5 weeks after transplantation. The proliferative activity of transplanted cells was determined by both the mitotic index and the Ki-67 proliferative index. Disappearance of Oct-4-positive hES cells showing undifferentiated morphology was observed after intraperitoneal MTX treatment daily, for 15 days. Decreased mitotic and Ki-67 proliferative indices, and increased neuronal differentiation were detected in the surviving hES cells after the MTX treatment. These results suggest two important effects of intraperitoneal MTX treatment for hES cells transplanted into nude mouse retina: (1) MTX treatment following transplantation induces neuronal differentiation, and (2) MTX decreases proliferative activity and tumorigenic potential.

Generation of induced pluripotent stem cells from newborn marmoset skin fibroblasts

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) hold great promise for regenerative medicine. For the application of iPSCs to forms of autologous cell therapy, suitable animal models are required. Among species that could potentially be used for this purpose, nonhuman primates are particularly important, and among these the marmoset offers significant advantages. In order to demonstrate the feasibility of the application of iPSC technology to this species, here we derived lines of marmoset iPSCs. Using retroviral transduction with human Oct4, Sox2, Klf4 and c-Myc, we derived clones that fulfil critical criteria for successful reprogramming: they exhibit typical iPSC morphology; they are alkaline phosphatase positive; they express high levels of NANOG, OCT4 and SOX2 mRNAs, while the corresponding vector genes are silenced; they are immunoreactive for Oct4, TRA-1-81 and SSEA-4; and when implanted into immunodeficient mice they produce teratomas that have derivatives of all three germ layers (endoderm, alpha-fetoprotein; ectoderm, betaIII-tubulin; mesoderm, smooth muscle actin). Starting with a population of 4 x 10(5) newborn marmoset skin fibroblasts, we obtained approximately 100 colonies with iPSC-like morphology. Of these, 30 were expanded sufficiently to be cryopreserved, and, of those, 8 were characterized in more detail. These experiments provide proof of principle that iPSC technology can be adapted for use in the marmoset, as a future model of autologous cell therapy.

Generation of functional human hepatic endoderm from human induced pluripotent stem cells

With the advent of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology, it is now feasible to generate iPSCs with a defined genotype or disease state. When coupled with direct differentiation to a defined lineage, such as hepatic endoderm (HE), iPSCs would revolutionize the way we study human liver biology and generate efficient "off the shelf" models of human liver disease. Here, we show the "proof of concept" that iPSC lines representing both male and female sexes and two ethnic origins can be differentiated to HE at efficiencies of between 70%-90%, using a method mimicking physiological relevant condition. The iPSC-derived HE exhibited hepatic morphology and expressed the hepatic markers albumin and E-cadherin, as assessed by immunohistochemistry. They also expressed alpha-fetoprotein, hepatocyte nuclear factor-4a, and a metabolic marker, cytochrome P450 7A1 (Cyp7A1), demonstrating a definitive endodermal lineage differentiation. Furthermore, iPSC-derived hepatocytes produced and secreted the plasma proteins, fibrinogen, fibronectin, transthyretin, and alpha-fetoprotein, an essential feature for functional HE. Additionally iPSC-derived HE supported both CYP1A2 and CYP3A4 metabolism, which is essential for drug and toxicology testing.

CONCLUSION

This work is first to demonstrate the efficient generation of hepatic endodermal lineage from human iPSCs that exhibits key attributes of hepatocytes, and the potential application of iPSC-derived HE in studying human liver biology. In particular, iPSCs from individuals representing highly polymorphic variants in metabolic genes and different ethnic groups will provide pharmaceutical development and toxicology studies a unique opportunity to revolutionize predictive drug toxicology assays and allow the creation of in vitro hepatic disease models.

A three dimensional anchorage independent in vitro system for the prolonged growth of embryoid bodies to study cancer cell behaviour and anticancer agents

We describe a three dimensional (3D) anchorage independent in vitro protocol for the prolonged growth of human embryoid bodies (EBs) up to 90 days. We grew hESCs (46XX) in methylcellulose (MC) in motion culture in the presence of EB medium (EB), EB medium with Matrigel (EB + MAT), bulk culture medium (BCM), and BCM medium with Matrigel (BCM + MAT). All four experimental groups produced embryoid bodies (EBs) which with prolonged growth to 90 days acquired blood vessels and tissues from all three germ layers. Based on histology, microarray gene expression profiles and the definition for experimental teratomas, we could classify the EBs into early EBs, mature EBs and teratomas. The EB + MAT group produced the highest number of teratomas and their microarray data suggested the presence of inductive microenvironment niches and activation of pathways for self-organization, morphogenesis and growth. When we microinjected hepatocarcinoma-Green Fluorescent Protein cells (HepG2-GFP) (46XY) into the teratomas, after 10 days the HepG2-GFP cells had grown inside the teratoma as confirmed by confocal microscopy and SRY gene analysis. This 3D-MC-(EB + MAT) in vitro system requires few cells to produce many teratomas, can be used to test pluripotency of potential human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cell lines (hESC, hiPSC), and is an experimental humanized platform to study cancer cell behavior.

Myocardial interstitial fluid inhibits proliferation and cardiomyocyte differentiation in pluripotent embryonic stem cells

Several recent studies have demonstrated that the transplantation of pluripotent murine embryonic stem cells (mESCs) can improve or restore the function of infarcted myocardium. Although the extent of remuscularization and its contribution to the restoration of function are unclear, these outcomes are likely strongly influenced by factors in the infarcted and/or ischemic environment. As an initial step toward understanding how the ischemic environment of host myocardium affects transplanted pluripotent cells, we have taken a reductionist approach wherein mESCs are cultured in medium containing ischemic myocardial interstitial fluid (iMIF). iMIF is generated in canine myocardium during eight hourly episodes of transient ischemia and collected on a daily basis, over a 24-day collection period. iMIF strongly reduced the numbers of pluripotent mESCs after 11 days in culture. This inhibitory effect, which was most pronounced for iMIF pools from early time points of the 24-day collection period, resulted from an inhibition of cell proliferation. iMIF also inhibited the differentiation of pluripotent mESCs into cardiomyocytes. By contrast, the expression of vascular smooth muscle and endothelial cell markers was relatively unaffected, consistent with previous findings that iMIF promotes angiogenesis. Taken together, these results suggest that whereas the ischemic/infarcted environment is favorable to stem cell-mediated angiogenesis, it is hostile to cardiac myogenesis. These findings also imply that observations of mESC-mediated improvement of cardiac function after transplantation of pluripotent cells do not reflect remuscularization.

A self-renewal program controls the expansion of genetically unstable cancer stem cells in pluripotent stem cell-derived tumors

Human germ cell tumors are often metastatic, presumably due to distal site tumor growth by cancer stem cells. To determine whether cancer stem cells can be identified in a transplantation model of testicular germ cell tumor, we transplanted murine embryonic germ cells (EGCs) into the testis of adult severe combined immunodeficient mice. Transplantation resulted in a locally invasive solid tumor, with a cellular component that generated secondary tumors upon serial transplantation. The secondary tumors were invariably metastatic, a feature not observed in the primary tumors derived from EGCs. To characterize the differences between EGCs and the tumor-derived stem cells, we performed karyotype and microarray analysis. Our results show that generation of cancer stem cells is associated with the acquisition of nonclonal genomic rearrangements not found in the originating population. Furthermore, pretreatment of EGCs with a potent inhibitor of self-renewal, retinoic acid, prevented tumor formation and the emergence of these genetically unstable cancer stem cells. Microarray analysis revealed that EGCs and first- and second-generation cancer stem cells were highly similar; however, approximately 1,000 differentially expressed transcripts could be identified corresponding to alterations in oncogenes and genes associated with motility and development. Combined, the data suggest that the activation of oncogenic pathways in a cellular background of genetic instability, coupled with an inherent ability to self-renew, is involved in the acquisition of metastatic behavior in the cancer stem cell population of tumors derived from pluripotent cells.

Pluripotency: toward a gold standard for human ES and iPS cells

With the advent of technologies for the derivation of embryonic stem cells and reprogrammed stem cells, use of the term "pluripotent" has become widespread. Despite its increased scientific and political importance, there are ambiguities with this designation and a common standard for experimental approaches that precisely define this state in human cells remains elusive. Recent studies have revealed that reprogramming may occur via many pathways which do not always lead to pluripotency. In addition, the pluripotent state itself appears to be highly dynamic, leading to significant variability in the results of molecular studies. Establishment of a stringent set of criteria for defining pluripotency will be vital for biological studies and potential clinical applications in this rapidly evolving field. In this review, we explore the various definitions of pluripotency, examine the current status of pluripotency testing in the field and provide an analysis of how these assays have been used to establish pluripotency in the scientific literature.

Stable isotope labeling by amino acids in cell culture (SILAC) and quantitative comparison of the membrane proteomes of self-renewing and differentiating human embryonic stem cells

Stable isotope labeling by amino acids in cell culture (SILAC) is a powerful quantitative proteomics platform for comprehensive characterization of complex biological systems. However, the potential of SILAC-based approaches has not been fully utilized in human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research mainly because of the complex nature of hESC culture conditions. Here we describe complete SILAC labeling of hESCs with fully preserved pluripotency, self-renewal capabilities, and overall proteome status that was quantitatively analyzed to a depth of 1556 proteins and 527 phosphorylation events. SILAC-labeled hESCs appear to be perfectly suitable for functional studies, and we exploited a SILAC-based proteomics strategy for discovery of hESC-specific surface markers. We determined and quantitatively compared the membrane proteomes of the self-renewing versus differentiating cells of two distinct human embryonic stem cell lines. Of the 811 identified membrane proteins, six displayed significantly higher expression levels in the undifferentiated state compared with differentiating cells. This group includes the established marker CD133/Prominin-1 as well as novel candidates for hESC surface markers: Glypican-4, Neuroligin-4, ErbB2, receptor-type tyrosine-protein phosphatase zeta (PTPRZ), and Glycoprotein M6B. Our study also revealed 17 potential markers of hESC differentiation as their corresponding protein expression levels displayed a dramatic increase in differentiated embryonic stem cell populations.

Teratoma formation by human embryonic stem cells: evaluation of essential parameters for future safety studies

Transplantation of human embryonic stem cells (hESC) into immune-deficient mice leads to the formation of differentiated tumors comprising all three germ layers, resembling spontaneous human teratomas. Teratoma assays are considered the gold standard for demonstrating differentiation potential of pluripotent hESC and hold promise as a standard for assessing safety among hESC-derived cell populations intended for therapeutic applications. We tested the potency of teratoma formation in seven anatomical transplantation locations (kidney capsule, muscle, subcutaneous space, peritoneal cavity, testis, liver, epididymal fat pad) in SCID mice with and without addition of Matrigel, and found that intramuscular teratoma formation was the most experimentally convenient, reproducible, and quantifiable. In the same experimental setting, we compared undifferentiated hESC and differentiated populations enriched for either beating cardiomyocytes or definitive endoderm derivatives (insulin-secreting beta cells), and showed that all cell preparations rapidly formed teratomas with varying percentages of mesoderm, ectoderm, and endoderm. In limiting dilution experiments, we found that as little as two hESC colonies spiked into feeder fibroblasts produced a teratoma, while a more rigorous single-cell titration achieved a detection limit of 1/4000. In summary, we established core parameters essential for facilitating safety profiling of hESC-derived products for future therapeutic applications.

Taking stem cells to the clinic: Major challenges

Stem cell therapy offers tremendous promise in the treatment of many incurable diseases. A variety of stem cell types are being studied but human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) appear to be the most versatile as they are pluripotent and can theoretically differentiate into all the tissues of the human body via the three primordial germ layers and the male and female germ lines. Currently, hESCs have been successfully converted in vitro into functional insulin secreting islets, cardiomyocytes, and neuronal cells and transfer of such cells into diabetic, ischaemic, and parkinsonian animal models respectively have shown successful engraftment. However, hESC-derived tissue application in the human is fraught with the problems of ethics, immunorejection, tumorigenesis from rogue undifferentiated hESCs, and inadequate cell numbers because of long population doubling times in hESCs. Human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSC) though not tumorigenic, also have their limitations of multipotency, immunorejection, and are currently confined to autologous transplantation with the genuine benefits in allogeneic settings not conclusively shown in large controlled human trials. Human Wharton's jelly stem cells (WJSC) from the umbilical cord matrix which are of epiblast origin and containing both hESC and hMSC markers appear to be less troublesome in not being an ethically controversial source, widely multipotent, not tumorigenic, maintain "stemness" for several serial passages and because of short population doubling time can be scaled up in large numbers. This report describes in detail the hurdles all these stem cell types have to overcome before stem cell-based therapy becomes a genuine reality.

Separation of SSEA-4 and TRA-1-60 labelled undifferentiated human embryonic stem cells from a heterogeneous cell population using magnetic-activated cell sorting (MACS) and fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS)

A major concern in human embryonic stem cell (hESC)-derived cell replacement therapy is the risk of tumorigenesis from undifferentiated hESCs residing in the population of hESC-derived cells. Separation of these undifferentiated hESCs from the differentiated derivatives using cell sorting methods may be a plausible approach in overcoming this problem. We therefore explored magnetic activated cell sorting (MACS) and fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) to separate labelled undifferentiated hESCs from a heterogeneous population of hESCs and hepatocellular carcinoma cells (HepG2) deliberately mixed respectively at different ratios (10:90, 20:80, 30:70, 40:60 and 50:50) to mimic a standard in vitro differentiation protocol, instead of using a hESC-differentiated cell population, so that we could be sure of the actual number of cells separated. HES-3 and HES-4 cells were labelled in separate experiments for the stem cell markers SSEA-4 and TRA-1-60 using primary antibodies. Anti-PE magnetic microbeads that recognize the PE-conjugated SSEA-4 labelled hESCs was added to the heterogeneous cell mixture and passed through the MACS column. The cells that passed through the column ('flow-through' fraction) and those retained ('labelled' fraction') were subsequently analysed using FACS. The maximum efficacy of hESCs retention using MACS was 81.0 +/- 2.9% (HES-3) and 83.6 +/- 4.2% (HES-4). Using FACS, all the undifferentiated hESCs labelled with the two cell-surface markers could be removed by selective gating. Both hESCs and HepG2 cells in the 'flow-through' fraction following MACS separation were viable in culture whereas by FACS separation only the HepG2 cells were viable. FACS efficiently helps to eliminate the undifferentiated hESCs based on their cell-surface antigens expressed.