Expression of pluripotency-associated gene marks many types of adult stem cells
Thursday, October 6, 2011 - 12:30
in Biology & Nature
Investigators at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Regenerative Medicine and the Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) have found that Sox2 one of the transcription factors used in the conversion of adult stem cells into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) is expressed in many adult tissues where it had not been previously observed. They also confirmed that Sox2-expressing cells found in the stomach, testes, cervix and other structures are true adult stem cells that can give rise to all mature cell types in those tissues. The study appears in the October issue of Cell Stem Cell.