ESC & iPSC News Volume 13.33 | Aug 22 2018

TOP STORY

Modeling Sporadic ALS in iPSC-Derived Motor Neurons Identifies a Potential Therapeutic Agent

Using iPSC technology to generate stem and differentiated cells retaining the patients’ full genetic information, scientists established a large number of in vitro cellular models of sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). [Nat Med] Abstract

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Genetically Engineered Human Cortical Spheroid Models of Tuberous Sclerosis

Using heterozygous tuberous sclerosis complex 2 human PSCs with a conditional mutation in the functional allele, researchers showed that mosaic biallelic inactivation during neural progenitor expansion was necessary for the formation of dysplastic cells and increased glia production in three-dimensional cortical spheroids. [Nat Med] Abstract

Reduced MEK Inhibition Preserves Genomic Stability in Naive Human Embryonic Stem Cells

Investigators showed that reduced MEK inhibition facilitated the establishment and maintenance of naive human ESCs that retained naive-cell-specific features, including global DNA hypomethylation, HERVK expression, and two active X chromosomes. [Nat Methods] Abstract

Rapid and Efficient Induction of Functional Astrocytes from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

Scientists demonstrated that overexpression of the transcription factors SOX9 and NFIB in human PSCs rapidly and efficiently yielded homogeneous populations of induced astrocytes. [Nat Methods] Abstract | Press Release

TCF3 Alternative Splicing Controlled by hnRNP H/F Regulates E-cadherin Expression and hESC Pluripotency

Investigators found that heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins H1 and P (hnRNP H/F) levels were high in human ESCs (hESCs), leading to high E12 expression, but decreased during differentiation, switching splicing to produce elevated E47 levels. [Genes Dev] Abstract

Combinatorial Smad2/3 Activities Downstream of Nodal Signaling Maintain Embryonic/Extra-Embryonic Cell Identities during Lineage Priming

Scientists found that Smad2/3 double-knockout ESCs induced to form epiblast-like cells displayed changes in naive and primed pluripotency marker gene expression, associated with the disruption of Oct4-bound distal regulatory elements. [Cell Rep] Full Article | Graphical Abstract

Cell-Surface Marker Signature for Enrichment of Ventricular Cardiomyocytes Derived from Human Embryonic Stem Cells

A bacterial artificial chromosome transgenic H9 human ESC line in which GFP expression was driven by the human ventricular-specific myosin light chain 2 (MYL2) promoter was generated, and screened to identify cell-surface markers specific for MYL2-GFP-expressing ventricular cardiomyocytes. [Stem Cell Reports] Full Article

Geometrical Confinement Controls the Asymmetric Patterning of Brachyury in Cultures of Pluripotent Cells

Researchers provided evidence for a model where the overall level of diffusible signals together with the history of the cell culture defined the number of brachyury⁺ cells, whereas geometrical constraints guided patterning in a multi-step process involving a differential response of the cells to multicellular spatial organization. [Development] Abstract

Selective Elimination of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Using Medium with High Concentration of L-Alanine

Scientists found that undifferentiated human iPSCs (hiPSCs) were more sensitive to treatment with a medium supplemented with high concentration of L-alanine than human fibroblasts, human skeletal muscle cells, hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes or hiPSC-derived fibroblast-like cells, which were used as differentiated cells. [Sci Rep] Full Article

Deacetylation of Histone H4 Accompanying Cardiomyogenesis is Weakened in HDAC1-Depleted ES Cells

Investigators showed that trichostatin A was a strong hyperacetylating agent, especially in wild-type mouse ESCs (mESCs), but only SAHA reduced the size of the beating areas in embryonic bodies that originated from histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1) double knockout mESCs. [Int J Mol Sci] Full Article | Graphical Abstract

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Stem Cell Therapy in Heart Diseases – Cell Types, Mechanisms and Improvement Strategies

In order to optimize stem cell efficiency, it is crucial to elucidate the underlying mechanisms mediating the beneficial effects of stem cell transplantation. [Cell Physiol Biochem] Full Article

The Potential of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells for Modelling Diabetic Wound Healing In Vitro

Generation of iPSCs from tissues donated by diabetic patients allows the (epi)genetic background of this disease to be studied, and the ability to differentiate iPSCs to multiple cell types found within skin may facilitate the development of more complex skin models. [Clin Sci (Lond)] Abstract

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NIH Awards $6.5 Million to NDRI For Recovery of Human Tissues and Organs for Research

The five-year award of the Research Resource for Human Tissues and Organs Cooperative Agreement funds NDRI’s Human Tissue and Organs for Research Resource Program. [National Disease Research Interchange] Press Release

Centre Members Awarded $1.8M in NHMRC Funding

University of Melbourne researchers were recently awarded significant grants from the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). These fellowships, totalling $1.8 million, will support research to better understand eye disease, investigate using stem cells to repair certain brain cells, and identify key bacteria for therapeutic interventions. [The University of Melbourne] Press Release

International Stem Cell Corporation Granted Key US Patent Protecting Lead Therapeutic Program

International Stem Cell Corporation announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has granted the company a key patent on the use of neural cells for the treatment of various neurodegenerative diseases. [International Stem Cell Corporation] Press Release

Cellect Receives Notice of Allowance for Stem Cell Selection Technology Patent in Korea

Cellect Biotechnology Ltd. announced it has received a Notice of Allowance from the Korean Intellectual Property Office for its patent titled, “Devices and Methods for Selecting Apoptosis-Signaling Resistant Cells, and Uses Thereof”. [Cellect Biotechnology Ltd. (PR Newswire Association LLC.)] Press Release

Hundreds of Chimps at the NIH Await Retirement. This Senator Wants to Help

Sen. Bill Cassidy is trying to help hundreds of chimpanzees enjoy an easy retirement in his home state of Louisiana. The Republican is pushing for an amendment to a major appropriations bill winding its way through Congress that would force the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to make good on a 2015 promise to move all its chimps out of research facilities. [STAT News] Editorial

As Primate Research Drops in Europe, Overseas Options Appeal

A combination of public opposition, intense regulations, and rising costs in the EU make conditions in China and elsewhere attractive for studying monkeys. [The Scientist] Editorial

Salk Institute Asks Judge to Narrow Scope of Gender-Discrimination Suit

Lawyers representing the Salk Institute for Biological Studies went to court on 17 August in San Diego, California, asking a judge to narrow the scope of a gender-discrimination lawsuit filed by molecular biologist Beverly Emerson. [Nature News] Editorial

NEW EASL Basic School of Hepatology: Liver Cell Isolation and Characterization
January 16-18, 2019
Dusseldorf, Germany

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NEW Postdoctoral Fellow – Optogenetic Control of Cell Polarity (European Molecular Biology Laboratory)

Senior Scientist – Pluripotent Stem Cells (STEMCELL Technologies Inc.)

Assistant/Associate Professor – Stem Cell or Organoid Model Research (Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center)

Research Assistant – Chromatin & Development Research (Medical Research Council)

Postdoctoral Research Scientist – Cell Fate & Early Development Research (Medical Research Council)

Postdoctoral Associate – Developmental Immunology & Human PSC-Based Disease Models (University of Massachusetts)

Postdoctoral Position – Pluripotency, Signaling & Epigenetics (Washington University School of Medicine)

Postdoctoral Scholar – Cellular Basis of Morphogenesis (University of California, San Francisco)

Postdoctoral Scholar – Pluripotent Stem Cell Biology (University of California, Berkeley)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Cardiovascular Stem Cell Biology (University of Illinois at Chicago)

Research Associate/Scientist – iPSC Research and Manufacture (Evotec AG)

Postdoctoral Fellow – hiPSC Based Cardiac Regeneration (Duke University)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Human Skeletal Muscle Disease Modeling and Regeneration (Duke University)

Scientist/Senior Scientist – Bioprocess Engineering (Bluerock Therapeutics, LLC.)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Cardiovascular Tissue Engineering (Stanford University)

Postdoctoral Associate – hiPSC-Based Brain Organoids (Rutgers University)

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