Cardiac and skeletal muscle development in P19 embryonal carcinoma cells.

Mouse P19 embryonal carcinoma cells are pluripotent stem cells that can be maintained in culture in an undifferentiated state or can be induced to differentiate in vitro into multiple cell types. P19 cells aggregated in the presence of dimethylsulfoxide differentiate into spontaneously beating cardiomyocytes and bipolar skeletal myocytes that exhibit the biochemical and physiologic properties of their embryonic equivalents. P19 cells can be readily manipulated genetically, resulting in the loss or over-expression of a gene of interest. Because of this versatility, the P19 system is suited for examining the molecular mechanisms controlling the developmental decisions of stem cells differentiating into the skeletal or cardiac muscle lineage.