A defined Oct4 level governs cell state transitions of pluripotency entry and differentiation into all embryonic lineages.

ABSTRACT: Oct4 is considered a master transcription factor for pluripotent cell self-renewal, but its biology remains poorly understood. Here, we investigated the role of Oct4 using the process of induced pluripotency. We found that a defined embryonic stem cell (ESC) level of Oct4 is required for pluripotency entry. However, once pluripotency is established, the Oct4 level can be decreased up to sevenfold without loss of self-renewal. Unexpectedly, cells constitutively expressing Oct4 at an ESC level robustly differentiated into all embryonic lineages and germline. In contrast, cells with low Oct4 levels were deficient in differentiation, exhibiting expression of naive pluripotency genes in the absence of pluripotency culture requisites. The restoration of Oct4 expression to an ESC level rescued th

SUBMITTER: Radzisheuskaya A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3671976 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature