Totipotent cells
For the first time, a culture of absolutely universal stem cells was obtained
Biologists have obtained stem cells capable of developing into placental cells for the first time
Ksenia Malysheva, Naked Science
Today, researchers and doctors have two types of stem cells at their disposal: embryonic (ES) and pluripotent (iPS), the development of which can be artificially directed along almost any path. Bone marrow cells, adipose tissue cells, muscle fibers, and many other types of cells are obtained from them, but not all: for example, neither ES nor iPS can be turned into placental cells. They are obtained from the blastocyst, which is formed approximately after the hundredth division of the fertilized egg.
To obtain cells that retain the property of totipotence, that is, the ability to develop into absolutely any cell of the embryo, scientists took fertilized eggs from mice that managed to share only four to eight times. By suppressing all the chemical signals that control the development of the embryo, British biologists have obtained a culture of stem cells with Expanded Potential Stem Cells (EPSCs). They continued to divide, preserving the properties of the cells formed at stage 4-8 of division. Moreover, the researchers managed to reverse the development of mouse pluripotent and embryonic stem cells, returning them to the state of EPSCs.
The development of EPSCs can go three ways: the cells can transform into embryonic and pluripotent stem cells, from which the future organism is formed, as well as into two other types of cells, from which the placenta and yolk sac are formed.
Figure from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute press release New type of stem cell line produced offers expanded potential for research and treatments – VM.
EPSCs can find application in new areas of regenerative medicine, the study and treatment of fetal malformations and miscarriages. In the future, the authors plan to obtain EPSCs cultures of other mammals, including humans.
The results of the work are published in the journal Nature (Yang et al., Establishment of mouse expanded potential stem cells).
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