Wobus A M
In Vitro Differentiation Group, Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK), Corrensstr. 3, D-06466, Gatersleben, Germany.
Mol Aspects Med. 2001 Jun;22(3):149-64. doi: 10.1016/s0098-2997(01)00006-1.
Embryonic stem (ES) cells are pluripotent cell lines established from undifferentiated embryonic cells characterized by nearly unlimited self-renewal and differentiation capacity. During differentiation in vitro, ES cells were found to be able to develop into specialized somatic cells types and to recapitulate processes of early embryonic development. These properties allow to use ES cells as model system for studying early embryonic development by gain- or loss-of-function approaches, or to investigate the effects of drugs and environmental factors on differentiation and cell function in embryotoxicity and pharmacology. Now, ES cells derived of human blastocysts may be used for the generation of somatic precursor or differentiated cells in cell and tissue therapy. The review presents data of mouse ES cell differentiation and gives an outlook on future perspectives and problems of using human ES cells in regenerative medicine.
胚胎干细胞（ES细胞）是从未分化的胚胎细胞建立的多能细胞系，其特征是具有几乎无限的自我更新和分化能力。在体外分化过程中，发现ES细胞能够发育成特定的体细胞类型，并重现早期胚胎发育过程。这些特性使得ES细胞能够作为模型系统，通过功能获得或功能缺失方法研究早期胚胎发育，或在胚胎毒性和药理学中研究药物和环境因素对分化和细胞功能的影响。现在，源自人类囊胚的ES细胞可用于细胞和组织治疗中产生体细胞前体或分化细胞。本文综述了小鼠ES细胞分化的数据，并展望了在再生医学中使用人类ES细胞的未来前景和问题。
