title: Derivation of human embryonic stem cell lines from single blastomeres of low-quality embryos by direct plating.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore a simple method of establishing pluripotent human embryonic stem cell (hESC) lines from single blastomeres of low-quality (LQ) embryos.
  
  
  METHODS
  Blastomeres were isolated from normally fertilized, day-3 pre-implantation LQ embryos by dissolving of the zona pellucida and were then plated directly onto inactivated human foreskin fibroblasts. The subsequent culture was identical to that used to derive a hESC line from the inner cell mass of a blastocyst. The established hESC lines were passaged and characterized.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Two hESC lines were produced by culturing the blastomeres individually in a hESC culture system (hESC-CS). Both of the hESC lines maintained a normal 46-chromosome XY karyotype, expressed stemness markers, and showed a pluripotent phenotype, including the ability to differentiate into all three germ layers in vitro and in vivo.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The blastomeres of LQ embryos have a developmental capacity that necessitates prolonged culture. Plating of blastomeres from LQ embryos directly into the hESC-CS is a feasible method for deriving hESC lines.
authors.affiliation: Center for Reproductive Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, 58 Zhongshan Road II, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Qingyun
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Mai
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Canquan
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zhou
mesh_terms: D001757:Blastomeres / Q000166:cytology*; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002469:Cell Separation; D046149:Embryo Culture Techniques; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian / Q000166:cytology; D053595:Embryonic Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D005307:Fertilization in Vitro; D052816:Foreskin / Q000166:cytology; D006801:Humans; D059785:Karyotype; D008297:Male; D039904:Pluripotent Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*