ESC & iPSC News Volume 6.15 | Apr 20 2011

Wdr5 Mediates Self-Renewal and Reprogramming via the Embryonic Stem Cell Core Transcriptional Network
Researchers propose an integrated model of transcriptional and epigenetic control, mediated by select trxG members, for the maintenance of embryonic stem cell self-renewal and somatic cell reprogramming. [Cell]

Multiple Targets of miR-302 and miR-372 Promote Reprogramming of Human Fibroblasts to Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
Researchers show that the human embryonic stem cell-specific cell cycle-regulating miRNA orthologs hsa-miR-302b and hsa-miR-372 promote human somatic cell reprogramming. [Nat Biotechnol]

Incomplete DNA Methylation Underlies a Transcriptional Memory of Somatic Cells in Human iPS Cells
Researchers carried out a systematic comparison of human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells generated from hepatocytes (representative of endoderm), skin fibroblasts (mesoderm) and melanocytes (ectoderm). All low-passage iPS cells analyzed retain a transcriptional memory of the original cells. [Nat Cell Biol]

Conserved, Developmentally Regulated Mechanism Couples Chromosomal Looping and Heterochromatin Barrier Activity at the Homeobox Gene A Locus
Using mouse embryonic stem cells in both a pluripotent and differentiated neuronal progenitor state, researchers determined that embryonic stem cell pluripotency factor OCT4 antagonizes cohesin loading at the CTCF binding site. [Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A]

Single Transcription Factor Reprogramming of Hair Follicle Dermal Papilla Cells to Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
Researchers exploit that dermal papilla cells from hair follicles in the skin express all but one reprogramming factors to show that these accessible cells can be reprogrammed into induced pluripotent stem cells with the single transcription factor Oct4 and without further manipulation. [Stem Cells]

Reprogramming of Postnatal Neurons into Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells by Defined Factors
Findings indicate that terminally differentiated postnatal neurons are able to acquire the pluripotent state by direct epigenetic reprogramming, and this process is made more efficient through the suppression of lineage specific gene expression. [Stem Cells]

Critical-Size Calvarial Bone Defects Healing in a Mouse Model with Silk Scaffolds and SATB2-Modified iPSCs
The results demonstrate that SATB2 facilitates the differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) towards osteoblast-lineage cells by repressing HoxA2 and augmenting the functions of the osteoblast determinants Runx2, bone sialoprotein and osteocalcin. [Biomaterials]

ID1 and ID3 Represent Conserved Negative Regulators of Human Embryonic and Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Hematopoiesis
The study uniquely identifies ID1 and ID3 as negative regulators of the human pluripotent stem cell-hematopoietic transition from a hemogenic to a committed hematopoietic fate, and demonstrates that this is conserved between human embryonic stem cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells. [J Cell Sci]

Prion Protein Expression Regulates Embryonic Stem Cell Pluripotency and Differentiation
Findings provide strong evidence for a relationship between Prnp and several key pluripotency genes and attribute Prnp a crucial role in regulating self-renewal/differentiation status of embryonic stem cells, confirming the participation of cellular prion protein (PRNP) during early embryogenesis. [PLoS ONE]

Generation of LIF and bFGF-Dependent Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells from Canine Adult Somatic Cells
Researchers report the generation of canine induced pluripotent stem cells from canine adult fibroblasts, which they accomplished by introducing human OCT4, SOX2, c-MYC, and KLF4. [Stem Cells Dev]

E-Cadherin-Expressing Feeder Cells Promote Neural Lineage Restriction of Human Embryonic Stem Cells
Researchers have rapidly and efficiently differentiated human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) into neural stem cells by presenting the cell adhesion molecule, E-cadherin, to undifferentiated hESCs via E-cadherin transfected fibroblast monolayers. [Stem Cells Dev]

King’s Set to Join Scientific Powerhouse
King’s College London and Imperial College London are set to join the partners behind the world-leading medical research institute: the UK Centre for Medical Research and Innovation. [King’s College London Press Release]

Sanofi-aventis Enters into Collaboration Agreement with Stanford University Bio-X to Focus on Early-Stage Scientific Research
Sanofi-aventis announced that it has entered into a multi-year research collaboration agreement through the Stanford University Bio-X program that supports, organizes, and facilitates interdisciplinary, collaborative and innovative research projects in the early phases of development. [PR Newswire]

AAN Foundation Awards $240,000 Brain Research Award to Massachusetts General Hospital Researcher
The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Foundation and The Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Association awarded the AAN Foundation/ALS Clinician-Scientist Development Three-Year Award to Steve Han, MD, PhD for his work to determine whether technology that converts patient skin cells to stem cells can be recreated to further understand ALS. [American Academy of Neurology Press Release]

$20 Million Endowment for Biomedical Engineering Research
A $20 million endowment to foster research collaboration between bioengineers and clinicians, with the ultimate goal to develop new technologies to improve patient care, has been created by Duke University and the Wallace H. Coulter Foundation. [Duke University Press Release]

ACT Files European Clinical Trial Application for Phase I/II Study Using Embryonic Stem Cells to Treat Macular Degeneration
Advanced Cell Technology, Inc. (ACT) announced that it has filed a clinical trial application with the European Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency seeking clearance to initiate its Phase I/II clinical trial using retinal pigment epithelial cells derived from human embryonic stem cells to treat patients with Stargardt’s Macular Dystrophy. [PR Newswire]

IUPUI Faculty Member to Receive National Innovative Vision Research Award
Jason S. Meyer, Ph.D., assistant professor of biology in the School of Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), will be honored by the largest eye and vision research organization in the world for work which one day may lead to reversal of blindness caused by macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa and other diseases of the retina. [Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis Press Release]

GOP Legislators Want Universities to Report on Stem Cell Use
Some Republican lawmakers want to know exactly how Michigan’s research universities are using stem cells. They want the universities to report how many human embryos they have and how many stem cell lines they have created using them. [Michigan House of Representatives, United States]

Australian Medical Scientists Protest Hefty Budget Cuts
Chanting “cures not cuts,” some 7000 medical researchers took to the streets in five Australian cities this week to protest a steep cut – about 20% per year – to medical research spending anticipated in the federal government’s 2011 budget. [National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia]

Limited Competition for Continuation of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell (iPSC) Resources Promoting Translational Research Advancements in Neurodegenerative Diseases (U24) (RFA-NS-11-011) [National Institutes of Health, United States]

Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health; Notice of Meeting (FR Doc. 2011-9131) [National Institutes of Health, United States]

Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health; Notice of Meeting (FR Doc. 2011-9320) [National Institutes of Health, United States]

Center for Scientific Review; Notice of Closed Meeting (FR Doc. 2011-9577) [National Institutes of Health, United States]

Center for Scientific Review; Notice of Closed Meetings (FR Doc. 2011-9493) [National Institutes of Health, United States]

Public Meeting of the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues (FR Doc. 2011-9123) [Department of Health and Human Services, United States]

Notice of Intent to Seek Approval to Continue an Information Collection (FR Doc. 2011-9032) [National Science Foundation, Untied States]

December 14, 2010: Cellular, Tissue and Gene Therapies Advisory Committee Meeting Minutes [Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, United States]

Visit our events page to see a complete list of events in the ESC & iPSC community.

Lab Technologist – Human Embryonic and Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (STEMCELL Technologies)

Assistant Professor (University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Center for Cellular and Molecular Engineering)

Postdoctoral Position in Stem Cells and Epigenetics (Mount School of Medicine)

Stem Cell Biologist (Pfizer)

Postdoctoral Fellow (Stanford University)

Senior Postdoctoral Fellow (New York Stem Cell Foundation)

Postdoctoral Research Fellow (University of Ottawa)

Postdoctoral Positions in Epigenomics (Umeå University)

Postdoc in Human Embryonic Stem Cell Bioprocessing (School of Biotechnology at the Royal Institute of Technology)

Postdoctoral Position (Spanish National Cancer Center)

Recruit Top Talent
Reach more than 11,000 potential candidates by posting your organization’s career opportunities on the Connexon Creative Job Board at no cost.

Jobs are categorized regionally: United States, Canada, Europe, Asia Pacific

Visit here to post your career opportunities.

Have we missed an important article or publication in ESC & iPSC News? Click here to submit!

Comments or Suggestions? Email info@connexoncreative.com with your feedback.