title: Role of SOX2 in maintaining pluripotency of human embryonic stem cells.
abstract: Human embryonic stem cell (ESC) pluripotency is thought to be regulated by several key transcription factors including OCT4, NANOG, and SOX2. Although the functions of OCT4 and NANOG in human ESCs are well defined, that of SOX2 has not been fully characterized. To investigate the role of SOX2, we modulated the level of SOX2 expression in human ESCs. Reduction of SOX2 expression in human ESCs induced trophectodermal and partial endodermal differentiation. Interestingly, CDX2, a typical trophectoderm-associated gene, was not up-regulated. In contrast, using the Tet-on gene inducible system, SOX2 over-expression in human ESCs induced trophectoderm differentiation accompanied by increased CDX2 expression. Additionally, SOX2 over-expression resulted in an increase in CGalpha-positive cells, which marks later stage trophectoderm development, rather than placental lactogen-positive cells. Thus, over-expression as well as repression of SOX2 expression in human ESCs resulted in their differentiation into the trophectoderm lineage. Our data show that SOX2 plays an important role in the maintenance of pluripotency of human ESCs and possibly, trophoblast development.
authors.affiliation: Department of Development and Differentiation, Institute for Frontier Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shougoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan.
authors.forename: Keiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Adachi
authors.forename: Hirofumi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Suemori
authors.forename: Shin-Ya
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Yasuda
authors.forename: Norio
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nakatsuji
authors.forename: Eihachiro
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kawase
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000502:physiology; D053595:Embryonic Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D000071317:Nanog Homeobox Protein; D050814:Octamer Transcription Factor-3 / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D039904:Pluripotent Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D034622:RNA Interference; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D055748:SOXB1 Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D014327:Trophoblasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D018398:Homeodomain Proteins; C486780:NANOG protein, human; D000071317:Nanog Homeobox Protein; D050814:Octamer Transcription Factor-3; C494173:POU5F1 protein, human; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering; C527782:SOX2 protein, human; D055748:SOXB1 Transcription Factors