1
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Kim Y, Choi SR, Cho KH. Reducing State Conflicts between Network Motifs Synergistically Enhances Cancer Drug Effects and Overcomes Adaptive Resistance. Cancers (Basel) 2024; 16:1337. [PMID: 38611015 PMCID: PMC11010870 DOI: 10.3390/cancers16071337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2024] [Revised: 03/20/2024] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 04/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Inducing apoptosis in cancer cells is a primary goal in anti-cancer therapy, but curing cancer with a single drug is unattainable due to drug resistance. The complex molecular network in cancer cells causes heterogeneous responses to single-target drugs, thereby inducing an adaptive drug response. Here, we showed that targeted drug perturbations can trigger state conflicts between multi-stable motifs within a molecular regulatory network, resulting in heterogeneous drug responses. However, we revealed that properly regulating an interconnecting molecule between these motifs can synergistically minimize the heterogeneous responses and overcome drug resistance. We extracted the essential cellular response dynamics of the Boolean network driven by the target node perturbation and developed an algorithm to identify a synergistic combinatorial target that can reduce heterogeneous drug responses. We validated the proposed approach using exemplary network models and a gastric cancer model from a previous study by showing that the targets identified with our algorithm can better drive the networks to desired states than those with other control theories. Of note, our approach suggests a new synergistic pair of control targets that can increase cancer drug efficacy to overcome adaptive drug resistance.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Kwang-Hyun Cho
- Laboratory for Systems Biology and Bio-Inspired Engineering, Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon 34141, Republic of Korea; (Y.K.); (S.R.C.)
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2
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Tang YC, Ponsin K, Graham-Paquin AL, Luthold C, Homsy K, Schindler M, Tran V, Côté JF, Bordeleau F, Khadra A, Bouchard M. Coordination of non-professional efferocytosis and actomyosin contractility during epithelial tissue morphogenesis. Cell Rep 2023; 42:112202. [PMID: 36871220 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2021] [Revised: 10/27/2022] [Accepted: 02/15/2023] [Indexed: 03/06/2023] Open
Abstract
In developing embryos, specific cell populations are often removed to remodel tissue architecture for organogenesis. During urinary tract development, an epithelial duct called the common nephric duct (CND) gets shortened and eventually eliminated to remodel the entry point of the ureter into the bladder. Here we show that non-professional efferocytosis (the process in which epithelial cells engulf apoptotic bodies) is the main mechanism that contributes to CND shortening. Combining biological metrics and computational modeling, we show that efferocytosis with actomyosin contractility are essential factors that drive the CND shortening without compromising the ureter-bladder structural connection. The disruption of either apoptosis, non-professional efferocytosis, or actomyosin results in contractile tension reduction and deficient CND shortening. Actomyosin activity helps to maintain tissue architecture while non-professional efferocytosis removes cellular volume. Together our results demonstrate that non-professional efferocytosis with actomyosin contractility are important morphogenetic factors controlling CND morphogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- You Chi Tang
- Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Research Institute and Department of Biochemistry, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 1A3, Canada.
| | - Khoren Ponsin
- Department of Physiology and Department of Mathematics, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 1Y6, Canada
| | - Adda-Lee Graham-Paquin
- Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Research Institute and Department of Biochemistry, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 1A3, Canada
| | - Carole Luthold
- CHU de Québec-Université Laval Research Center (Oncology Division), Université Laval Cancer Research Center and Faculty of Medicine, Université Laval, Quebec City, QC G1R 3S3, Canada
| | - Kevin Homsy
- CHU de Québec-Université Laval Research Center (Oncology Division), Université Laval Cancer Research Center and Faculty of Medicine, Université Laval, Quebec City, QC G1R 3S3, Canada
| | - Magdalena Schindler
- Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Research Institute and Department of Biochemistry, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 1A3, Canada
| | - Viviane Tran
- Montreal Clinical Research Institute (IRCM), Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada
| | - Jean-François Côté
- Montreal Clinical Research Institute (IRCM), Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada
| | - François Bordeleau
- CHU de Québec-Université Laval Research Center (Oncology Division), Université Laval Cancer Research Center and Faculty of Medicine, Université Laval, Quebec City, QC G1R 3S3, Canada
| | - Anmar Khadra
- Department of Physiology and Department of Mathematics, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 1Y6, Canada
| | - Maxime Bouchard
- Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Research Institute and Department of Biochemistry, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 1A3, Canada
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3
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Soto X, Biga V, Kursawe J, Lea R, Doostdar P, Thomas R, Papalopulu N. Dynamic properties of noise and Her6 levels are optimized by miR-9, allowing the decoding of the Her6 oscillator. EMBO J 2020; 39:e103558. [PMID: 32395844 PMCID: PMC7298297 DOI: 10.15252/embj.2019103558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2019] [Revised: 03/25/2020] [Accepted: 04/03/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Noise is prevalent in biology and has been widely quantified using snapshot measurements. This static view obscures our understanding of dynamic noise properties and how these affect gene expression and cell state transitions. Using a CRISPR/Cas9 Zebrafish her6::Venus reporter combined with mathematical and in vivo experimentation, we explore how noise affects the protein dynamics of Her6, a basic helix-loop-helix transcriptional repressor. During neurogenesis, Her6 expression transitions from fluctuating to oscillatory at single-cell level. We identify that absence of miR-9 input generates high-frequency noise in Her6 traces, inhibits the transition to oscillatory protein expression and prevents the downregulation of Her6. Together, these impair the upregulation of downstream targets and cells accumulate in a normally transitory state where progenitor and early differentiation markers are co-expressed. Computational modelling and double smFISH of her6 and the early neurogenesis marker, elavl3, suggest that the change in Her6 dynamics precedes the downregulation in Her6 levels. This sheds light onto the order of events at the moment of cell state transition and how this is influenced by the dynamic properties of noise. Our results suggest that Her/Hes oscillations, facilitated by dynamic noise optimization by miR-9, endow progenitor cells with the ability to make a cell state transition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ximena Soto
- Faculty of Biology Medicine and HealthSchool of Medical SciencesThe University of ManchesterManchesterUK
| | - Veronica Biga
- Faculty of Biology Medicine and HealthSchool of Medical SciencesThe University of ManchesterManchesterUK
| | - Jochen Kursawe
- School of Mathematics and StatisticsUniversity of St AndrewsSt AndrewsUK
| | - Robert Lea
- Faculty of Biology Medicine and HealthSchool of Medical SciencesThe University of ManchesterManchesterUK
| | - Parnian Doostdar
- Faculty of Biology Medicine and HealthSchool of Medical SciencesThe University of ManchesterManchesterUK
| | - Riba Thomas
- Faculty of Biology Medicine and HealthSchool of Medical SciencesThe University of ManchesterManchesterUK
| | - Nancy Papalopulu
- Faculty of Biology Medicine and HealthSchool of Medical SciencesThe University of ManchesterManchesterUK
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4
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Dries R, Stryjewska A, Coddens K, Okawa S, Notelaers T, Birkhoff J, Dekker M, Verfaillie CM, Del Sol A, Mulugeta E, Conidi A, Grosveld FG, Huylebroeck D. Integrative and perturbation-based analysis of the transcriptional dynamics of TGFβ/BMP system components in transition from embryonic stem cells to neural progenitors. Stem Cells 2019; 38:202-217. [PMID: 31675135 PMCID: PMC7027912 DOI: 10.1002/stem.3111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2019] [Accepted: 10/09/2019] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Cooperative actions of extrinsic signals and cell‐intrinsic transcription factors alter gene regulatory networks enabling cells to respond appropriately to environmental cues. Signaling by transforming growth factor type β (TGFβ) family ligands (eg, bone morphogenetic proteins [BMPs] and Activin/Nodal) exerts cell‐type specific and context‐dependent transcriptional changes, thereby steering cellular transitions throughout embryogenesis. Little is known about coordinated regulation and transcriptional interplay of the TGFβ system. To understand intrafamily transcriptional regulation as part of this system's actions during development, we selected 95 of its components and investigated their mRNA‐expression dynamics, gene‐gene interactions, and single‐cell expression heterogeneity in mouse embryonic stem cells transiting to neural progenitors. Interrogation at 24 hour intervals identified four types of temporal gene transcription profiles that capture all stages, that is, pluripotency, epiblast formation, and neural commitment. Then, between each stage we performed esiRNA‐based perturbation of each individual component and documented the effect on steady‐state mRNA levels of the remaining 94 components. This exposed an intricate system of multilevel regulation whereby the majority of gene‐gene interactions display a marked cell‐stage specific behavior. Furthermore, single‐cell RNA‐profiling at individual stages demonstrated the presence of detailed co‐expression modules and subpopulations showing stable co‐expression modules such as that of the core pluripotency genes at all stages. Our combinatorial experimental approach demonstrates how intrinsically complex transcriptional regulation within a given pathway is during cell fate/state transitions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruben Dries
- Department of Cell Biology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.,Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Agata Stryjewska
- Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Kathleen Coddens
- Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Satoshi Okawa
- Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Belvaux, Luxembourg.,Integrated BioBank of Luxembourg, Dudelange, Luxembourg
| | - Tineke Notelaers
- Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Judith Birkhoff
- Department of Cell Biology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Mike Dekker
- Department of Cell Biology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | - Antonio Del Sol
- Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Belvaux, Luxembourg.,CIC bioGUNE, Bizkaia Technology Park, Derio, Spain.,IKERBASQUE, Basque, Foundation for Science, Bilbao, Spain
| | - Eskeatnaf Mulugeta
- Department of Cell Biology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Andrea Conidi
- Department of Cell Biology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.,Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Frank G Grosveld
- Department of Cell Biology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Danny Huylebroeck
- Department of Cell Biology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.,Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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5
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Abstract
The Hippo pathway is an evolutionarily conserved kinase cascade that is fundamental for tissue development, homeostasis, and regeneration. In the developing mammalian heart, Hippo signaling regulates cardiomyocyte numbers and organ size. While cardiomyocytes in the adult heart are largely postmitotic, Hippo deficiency can increase proliferation of these cells and affect cardiac regenerative capacity. Recent studies have also shown that resident cardiac fibroblasts play a critical role in disease responsiveness and healing, and in this issue of Genes and Development, Xiao and colleagues (pp. 1491-1505) demonstrate that Hippo signaling also integrates the activity of fibroblasts in the heart. They show that Hippo signaling normally maintains the cardiac fibroblast in a resting state and, conversely, its inactivation during disease-related stress results in a spontaneous transition toward a myofibroblast state that underlies fibrosis and ventricular remodeling. This phenotypic switch is associated with increased cytokine signaling that promotes nonautonomous resident fibroblast and myeloid cell activation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Katrine Z Johansen
- Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio 45229, USA
| | - Jeffery D Molkentin
- Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio 45229, USA.,Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio 45229, USA
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6
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Xiao Y, Hill MC, Li L, Deshmukh V, Martin TJ, Wang J, Martin JF. Hippo pathway deletion in adult resting cardiac fibroblasts initiates a cell state transition with spontaneous and self-sustaining fibrosis. Genes Dev 2019; 33:1491-1505. [PMID: 31558567 PMCID: PMC6824468 DOI: 10.1101/gad.329763.119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2019] [Accepted: 08/20/2019] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
Cardiac fibroblasts (CFs) respond to injury by transitioning through multiple cell states, including resting CFs, activated CFs, and myofibroblasts. We report here that Hippo signaling cell-autonomously regulates CF fate transitions and proliferation, and non-cell-autonomously regulates both myeloid and CF activation in the heart. Conditional deletion of Hippo pathway kinases, Lats1 and Lats2, in uninjured CFs initiated a self-perpetuating fibrotic response in the adult heart that was exacerbated by myocardial infarction (MI). Single cell transcriptomics showed that uninjured Lats1/2 mutant CFs spontaneously transitioned to a myofibroblast cell state. Through gene regulatory network reconstruction, we found that Hippo-deficient myofibroblasts deployed a network of transcriptional regulators of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, and the unfolded protein response (UPR) consistent with elevated secretory activity. We observed an expansion of myeloid cell heterogeneity in uninjured Lats1/2 CKO hearts with similarity to cells recovered from control hearts post-MI. Integrated genome-wide analysis of Yap chromatin occupancy revealed that Yap directly activates myofibroblast cell identity genes, the proto-oncogene Myc, and an array of genes encoding pro-inflammatory factors through enhancer-promoter looping. Our data indicate that Lats1/2 maintain the resting CF cell state through restricting the Yap-induced injury response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yang Xiao
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA
| | - Matthew C Hill
- Program in Developmental Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA
| | - Lele Li
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA
| | - Vaibhav Deshmukh
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA
| | - Thomas J Martin
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA
| | - Jun Wang
- Department of Pediatrics, McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, Texas 77030, USA
| | - James F Martin
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA
- Program in Developmental Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA
- Cardiovascular Research Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA
- Texas Heart Institute, Houston, Texas 77030, USA
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7
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Tischler J, Gruhn WH, Reid J, Allgeyer E, Buettner F, Marr C, Theis F, Simons BD, Wernisch L, Surani MA. Metabolic regulation of pluripotency and germ cell fate through α-ketoglutarate. EMBO J 2019; 38:embj.201899518. [PMID: 30257965 PMCID: PMC6315289 DOI: 10.15252/embj.201899518] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2018] [Revised: 08/24/2018] [Accepted: 08/27/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
An intricate link is becoming apparent between metabolism and cellular identities. Here, we explore the basis for such a link in an in vitro model for early mouse embryonic development: from naïve pluripotency to the specification of primordial germ cells (PGCs). Using single-cell RNA-seq with statistical modelling and modulation of energy metabolism, we demonstrate a functional role for oxidative mitochondrial metabolism in naïve pluripotency. We link mitochondrial tricarboxylic acid cycle activity to IDH2-mediated production of alpha-ketoglutarate and through it, the activity of key epigenetic regulators. Accordingly, this metabolite has a role in the maintenance of naïve pluripotency as well as in PGC differentiation, likely through preserving a particular histone methylation status underlying the transient state of developmental competence for the PGC fate. We reveal a link between energy metabolism and epigenetic control of cell state transitions during a developmental trajectory towards germ cell specification, and establish a paradigm for stabilizing fleeting cellular states through metabolic modulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Tischler
- Wellcome Trust/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Wolfram H Gruhn
- Wellcome Trust/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - John Reid
- MRC Biostatistics Unit, Cambridge Institute of Public Health, University of Cambridge, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Cambridge, UK.,The Alan Turing Institute, British Library, London, UK
| | - Edward Allgeyer
- Wellcome Trust/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Florian Buettner
- Institute of Computational Biology, Helmholtz Zentrum München-German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Carsten Marr
- Institute of Computational Biology, Helmholtz Zentrum München-German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Fabian Theis
- Institute of Computational Biology, Helmholtz Zentrum München-German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.,Department of Mathematics, Chair of Mathematical Modeling of Biological Systems Technische Universität München, Garching, Germany
| | - Ben D Simons
- Wellcome Trust/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Lorenz Wernisch
- MRC Biostatistics Unit, Cambridge Institute of Public Health, University of Cambridge, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Cambridge, UK
| | - M Azim Surani
- Wellcome Trust/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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8
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Buder T, Deutsch A, Seifert M, Voss-Böhme A. CellTrans: An R Package to Quantify Stochastic Cell State Transitions. Bioinform Biol Insights 2017; 11:1177932217712241. [PMID: 28659714 PMCID: PMC5478290 DOI: 10.1177/1177932217712241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2017] [Accepted: 04/22/2017] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Many normal and cancerous cell lines exhibit a stable composition of cells in distinct states which can, e.g., be defined on the basis of cell surface markers. There is evidence that such an equilibrium is associated with stochastic transitions between distinct states. Quantifying these transitions has the potential to better understand cell lineage compositions. We introduce CellTrans, an R package to quantify stochastic cell state transitions from cell state proportion data from fluorescence-activated cell sorting and flow cytometry experiments. The R package is based on a mathematical model in which cell state alterations occur due to stochastic transitions between distinct cell states whose rates only depend on the current state of a cell. CellTrans is an automated tool for estimating the underlying transition probabilities from appropriately prepared data. We point out potential analytical challenges in the quantification of these cell transitions and explain how CellTrans handles them. The applicability of CellTrans is demonstrated on publicly available data on the evolution of cell state compositions in cancer cell lines. We show that CellTrans can be used to (1) infer the transition probabilities between different cell states, (2) predict cell line compositions at a certain time, (3) predict equilibrium cell state compositions, and (4) estimate the time needed to reach this equilibrium. We provide an implementation of CellTrans in R, freely available via GitHub (https://github.com/tbuder/CellTrans).
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Buder
- Fakultät Informatik/Mathematik, Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft Dresden, Dresden, Germany.,Zentrum für Informationsdienste und Hochleistungsrechnen (ZIH), Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Andreas Deutsch
- Fakultät Informatik/Mathematik, Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Michael Seifert
- Institut für Medizinische Informatik und Biometrie, Medizinische Fakultät Carl Gustav Carus, Dresden, Germany.,Nationales Centrum für Tumorerkrankungen (NCT) Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Anja Voss-Böhme
- Fakultät Informatik/Mathematik, Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft Dresden, Dresden, Germany.,Zentrum für Informationsdienste und Hochleistungsrechnen (ZIH), Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
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9
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Radzisheuskaya A, Silva JCR. Do all roads lead to Oct4? the emerging concepts of induced pluripotency. Trends Cell Biol 2013; 24:275-84. [PMID: 24370212 PMCID: PMC3976965 DOI: 10.1016/j.tcb.2013.11.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2013] [Revised: 11/25/2013] [Accepted: 11/26/2013] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Oct4 has unique and diverse functions in reprogramming. Oct4 is essential for lineage specification. Oct4 regulates multiple contrasting processes of cell identity change. Oct4 function may be regulated by cellular context and environment.
Pluripotent cells have the potential to differentiate into all of the cell types of an animal. This unique cell state is governed by an interconnected network of transcription factors. Among these, Oct4 plays an essential role both in the development of pluripotent cells in the embryo and in the self-renewal of its in vitro counterpart, embryonic stem (ES) cells. Furthermore, Oct4 is one of the four Yamanaka factors and its overexpression alone can generate induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. Recent reports underscore Oct4 as an essential regulator of opposing cell state transitions, such as pluripotency establishment and differentiation into embryonic germ lineages. Here we discuss these recent studies and the potential mechanisms underlying these contrasting functions of Oct4.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aliaksandra Radzisheuskaya
- Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QR, UK; Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QR, UK
| | - José C R Silva
- Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QR, UK; Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QR, UK.
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