title: Reactive oxygen species enhance differentiation of human embryonic stem cells into mesendodermal lineage.
abstract: Recently, reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been studied as a regulator of differentiation into specific cell types in embryonic stem cells (ESCs). However, ROS role in human ESCs (hESCs) is unknown because mouse ESCs have been used mainly for most studies. Herein we suggest that ROS generation may play a critical role in differentiation of hESCs; ROS enhances differentiation of hESCs into bi-potent mesendodermal cell lineage via ROS-involved signaling pathways. In ROS-inducing conditions, expression of pluripotency markers (Oct4, Tra 1-60, Nanog, and Sox2) of hESCs was decreased, while expression of mesodermal and endodermal markers was increased. Moreover, these differentiation events of hESCs in ROS-inducing conditions were decreased by free radical scavenger treatment. hESC-derived embryoid bodies (EBs) also showed similar differentiation patterns by ROS induction. In ROS-related signaling pathway, some of the MAPKs family members in hESCs were also affected by ROS induction. p38 MAPK and AKT (protein kinases B, PKB) were inactivated significantly by buthionine sulfoximine (BSO) treatment. JNK and ERK phosphorylation levels were increased at early time of BSO treatment but not at late time point. Moreover, MAPKs family-specific inhibitors could prevent the mesendodermal differentiation of hESCs by ROS induction. Our results demonstrate that stemness and differentiation of hESCs can be regulated by environmental factors such as ROS.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 110-799, Korea.
authors.forename: Ae-Ri
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.forename: Seung-Yup
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Ku
authors.forename: Myung Soo
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Yoon Young
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Yong Jin
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Sun Kyung
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.forename: Seok Hyun
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Shin Yong
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Moon
authors.forename: Young Min
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Choi
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects*; D002460:Cell Line; D019070:Cell Lineage / Q000187:drug effects*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D015536:Down-Regulation / Q000187:drug effects; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D053595:Embryonic Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000201:enzymology; D004707:Endoderm / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects; D004789:Enzyme Activation / Q000187:drug effects; D016166:Free Radical Scavengers / Q000494:pharmacology; D006801:Humans; D008648:Mesoderm / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D039904:Pluripotent Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015854:Up-Regulation / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D016166:Free Radical Scavengers; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases