ESCs are getting old too
Scientists have reversed the aging of stem cells
Scientists from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have rejuvenated human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) for the first time using a specially developed chemical "cocktail". The obtained biological material will improve the results of treatment with the help of ESCs and modeling of genetic diseases. The researchers' article was published in the journal Development (Zimmerlin et al., Tankyrase inhibition promotes a stable human naïve pluripotent state with improved functionality). EurekAlert reports briefly about the scientific work! (Researchers turn back the clock on human embryonic stem cells).
Classical human embryonic stem cells were isolated in 1998 from a blastocyst, an early stage of embryo development in which the fetus is a ball of two different cell populations. These ESCs were supposed to be a replacement for mouse stem cells, capable of turning into any other cells and easily amenable to genetic manipulation. However, it soon became clear that human ESCs had difficulty surviving in laboratory conditions and could only transform into certain types of tissues.
Geneticists were able to understand the reasons for such differences by discovering a new type of stem cells in rodents. They were found in an embryo that had already passed the blastocyst stage and attached to the uterine mucosa. These cells were only a couple of days older than ordinary mouse ESCs, but their properties strongly resembled "hardened" human embryonic stem cells. Thus, scientists realized that the latter are aged "flexible" ESCs and they can be rejuvenated.
For this purpose, geneticists have developed a so-called "3i cocktail", which consists of three inhibitor substances involved in the regulation of cellular development. The first drug suppresses the WNT signaling pathway, which is responsible for embryogenesis, the development of specialized cells and tumor growth. The second turns off the ERK pathway, which is involved in tissue proliferation and increased cell mobility. The last substance, a tankyrase inhibitor, is an anti–cancer agent.
The mixture allows you to transform classic human ESCs, giving them the ability to transform into any cells of the body. At the same time, mutations do not occur in them, which are a side effect of other reprogramming methods. Experiments have shown that the updated stem cells are two to three times more successfully transformed into vascular and nerve tissues suitable for transplantation.
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15.12.2016