Reprogramming of fibroblasts to a neural fate
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Cellular differentiation and lineage commitment are considered to be robust and irreversible processes during development. However, recent work has shown that mouse and human fibroblasts can be reprogrammed to a pluripotent state with a combination of four transcription factors. This raised the question of whether transcription factors could directly induce other defined somatic cell fates, and not only an undifferentiated state. We hypothesized that combinatorial expression of neural-lineage-specific transcription factors could directly convert fibroblasts into neurons. Starting from a pool of nineteen candidate genes, we identified a combination of only three factors, Ascl1, Brn2 (also called Pou3f2) and Myt1l that suffice to rapidly and efficiently convert mouse embryonic and postnatal fibroblasts into functional neurons in vitro. These induced neuronal (iN) cells express multiple neuron-specific proteins, generate action potentials and form functional synapses. Similar methods can also convert human fibroblasts to functional iN cells, by forced expression of Ascl1, Brn2, Myt1l and NeuroD1. Generation of iN cells from non-neural lineages could have important implications for studies of neural development, neurological disease modelling and regenerative medicine.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Form | electronic; electronic resource; remote |
| Extent | 1 online resource. |
| Publication date | 2012 |
| Issuance | monographic |
| Language | English |
Creators/Contributors
| Associated with | Vierbuchen, Thomas Scott |
|---|---|
| Associated with | Stanford University, Program in Cancer Biology. |
| Primary advisor | Wernig, Marius |
| Thesis advisor | Wernig, Marius |
| Thesis advisor | Beachy, Philip Arden |
| Thesis advisor | Chang, Howard |
| Thesis advisor | Wysocka, Joanna, Ph. D |
| Advisor | Beachy, Philip Arden |
| Advisor | Chang, Howard |
| Advisor | Wysocka, Joanna, Ph. D |
Subjects
| Genre | Theses |
|---|
Bibliographic information
| Statement of responsibility | Thomas Scott Vierbuchen. |
|---|---|
| Note | Submitted to the Program in Cancer Biology. |
| Thesis | Thesis (Ph.D.)--Stanford University, 2012. |
| Location | electronic resource |
Access conditions
- Copyright
- © 2012 by Thomas Scott Vierbuchen
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
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