embryonic stem cells

[eLife] Scientists identified a long non-coding RNA, Gm19705, that was over-expressed in hepatocellular carcinoma and mouse embryonic stem cells.

[Nature Genetics] Investigators explored the sequence requirements of CTCF-mediated transcriptional insulation using a sensitive insulator reporter in mouse embryonic stem cells.

[Stem Cell Research & Therapy] The KCNH2 was knocked out in the hESC H9 line using the CRISPR/Cas9 system. Using a chemically defined differentiation protocol, investigators obtained and verified human ether-a-go-go-related gene(hERG)-deficient cardiomyocytes. Subsequently, high-throughput microelectrode array assays and drug interventions were performed to characterise the electrophysiological signatures of hERG-deficient cell lines.

[Cardiovascular Research] The authors generated a patient-specific iPSC line from a family cohort carrying a hereditary atrial septal defect (ASD) mutation in GATA4 gene, as well as a hESC line carrying the isogenic T280M mutation using the CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing method. The GATA4-mutant iPSCs and ESCs were then differentiated into cardiomyocytes to model GATA4 mutation-associated ASD.

[Cell Proliferation] Scientists showed that retinoic acid had a broader role in 2C‐like cells state, not only was one of the upstream regulators of the 2C‐like state in chemically defined media but also illuminated genetic and epigenetic regulations that govern ESCs to 2C‐like transition.

[Stem Cell Reports] Investigators used human embryonic stem cell-derived cortical organoids to investigate whether SARS-CoV-2 could infect brain tissue in vitro and found that cortical organoids could be infected at low viral titers and within six hours.