Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Tartu, Riia 23, 51010 Tartu, Estonia.
Stem Cells Int. 2014;2014:298163. doi: 10.1155/2014/298163. Epub 2014 Feb 19.
Transcription factors NANOG, OCT4, and SOX2 regulate self-renewal and pluripotency in human embryonic stem (hES) cells; however, their expression profiles during early differentiation of hES cells are unclear. In this study, we used multiparameter flow cytometric assay to detect all three transcription factors (NANOG, OCT4, and SOX2) simultaneously at single cell level and monitored the changes in their expression during early differentiation towards endodermal lineage (induced by sodium butyrate). We observed at least four distinct populations of hES cells, characterized by specific expression patterns of NANOG, OCT4, and SOX2 and differentiation markers. Our results show that a single cell can express both differentiation and pluripotency markers at the same time, indicating a gradual mode of developmental transition in these cells. Notably, distinct regulation of SOX2 during early differentiation events was detected, highlighting the potential importance of this transcription factor for self-renewal of hES cells during differentiation.
转录因子 NANOG、OCT4 和 SOX2 调节人类胚胎干细胞 (hES) 的自我更新和多能性；然而，它们在 hES 细胞早期分化过程中的表达谱尚不清楚。在这项研究中，我们使用多参数流式细胞术检测在单细胞水平上同时检测这三个转录因子 (NANOG、OCT4 和 SOX2)，并监测它们在向内胚层谱系分化过程中的表达变化（由丁酸钠诱导）。我们观察到 hES 细胞至少有四个不同的群体，其特征是 NANOG、OCT4 和 SOX2 以及分化标志物的特定表达模式。我们的结果表明，单个细胞可以同时表达分化和多能性标志物，表明这些细胞的发育过渡模式是渐进的。值得注意的是，在早期分化事件中检测到 SOX2 的明显调节，突出了该转录因子在分化过程中维持 hES 细胞自我更新的潜在重要性。
