Tolkunova Elena, Cavaleri Fatima, Eckardt Sigrid, Reinbold Rolland, Christenson Lane K, Schöler Hans R, Tomilin Alexey
Department of Developmental Biology, Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology, Stübeweg 51, 79108 Freiburg, Germany.
Stem Cells. 2006 Jan;24(1):139-44. doi: 10.1634/stemcells.2005-0240. Epub 2005 Oct 6.
Besides holding great promise in clinics, embryonic stem (ES) cells represent a valuable tool for studying regulation of early developmental processes, such as cell differentiation in preimplantation embryos. The caudal-related homeobox protein Cdx2 is a transcriptional regulator essential for trophoblast lineage, functioning as early as implantation. Using an inducible system, we show that gain of Cdx2 function in ES cells triggers trophoblast-like morphological differentiation, accompanied by ploidy increase, onset of expression of trophoblast-specific markers, and loss of pluripotency-associated gene expression. These data provide an insight into the genetic network that controls lineage specification and functioning in early mammalian development.
除了在临床上具有巨大潜力外，胚胎干细胞（ES细胞）还是研究早期发育过程调控的宝贵工具，例如着床前胚胎中的细胞分化。尾型相关同源框蛋白Cdx2是滋养层细胞谱系所必需的转录调节因子，早在着床时就发挥作用。利用诱导系统，我们发现ES细胞中Cdx2功能的获得会触发滋养层样形态分化，伴随着倍性增加、滋养层特异性标志物表达的开始以及多能性相关基因表达的丧失。这些数据为控制早期哺乳动物发育中细胞谱系特化和功能的遗传网络提供了深入了解。
