title: Do all roads lead to Oct4? the emerging concepts of induced pluripotency.
abstract: Pluripotent cells have the potential to differentiate into all of the cell types of an animal. This unique cell state is governed by an interconnected network of transcription factors. Among these, Oct4 plays an essential role both in the development of pluripotent cells in the embryo and in the self-renewal of its in vitro counterpart, embryonic stem (ES) cells. Furthermore, Oct4 is one of the four Yamanaka factors and its overexpression alone can generate induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. Recent reports underscore Oct4 as an essential regulator of opposing cell state transitions, such as pluripotency establishment and differentiation into embryonic germ lineages. Here we discuss these recent studies and the potential mechanisms underlying these contrasting functions of Oct4.
authors.affiliation: Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QR, UK; Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QR, UK.
authors.forename: Aliaksandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Radzisheuskaya
authors.affiliation: Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QR, UK; Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QR, UK. Electronic address: jcs64@cscr.cam.ac.uk.
authors.forename: José C R
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Silva
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D065150:Cellular Reprogramming; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic; D006801:Humans; D057026:Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells / Q000502:physiology*; D050814:Octamer Transcription Factor-3 / Q000502:physiology*; D021381:Protein Transport
chemical_list: D050814:Octamer Transcription Factor-3; C494173:POU5F1 protein, human
keywords: cell differentiation; cell state transitions; embryonic stem cells; induced pluripotent stem cells; naïve pluripotency; reprogramming