ATOH8 is crucial for the differentiation of human trophoblast stem cells into extravillous trophoblasts.

ABSTRACT: The transcription factor ATOH8 regulates cell fate and differentiation during development. Loss of ATOH8 leads to defects in murine placenta development, yet its specific functions in self-renewal and differentiation of human trophoblast stem cells (TSCs) remain poorly understood. Here, we reveal that ATOH8 is critical for extravillous trophoblasts (EVTs) formation while being dispensable for the self-renewal of TSCs. We show predominant ATOH8 expression in EVTs compared to syncytiotrophoblasts (STs) and TSCs. Knockdown (KD) of ATOH8 in TSCs does not alter their morphology, proliferation, or self-renewal marker expression, indicating that ATOH8 is not required for TSC maintenance. However, during EVT differentiation, ATOH8 expression gradually increases and its depletion results in pronoun

SUBMITTER: Salamah J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12586484 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature