Embryonic Stem Cells
Embryonic Stem Cells (ESCs) are pluripotent stem cells derived from the inner cell mass (ICM) of a blastocyst during the early stages of embryonic development (5–7 days post-fertilization). ESCs possess two key characteristics: indefinite self-renewal and the ability to differentiate into all three germ layers—ectoderm, mesoderm, and endoderm.
Content on Embryonic Stem Cells
- Derivation and Culture:
- ESCs are isolated from the ICM of pre-implantation embryos.
- Cultured on feeder layers or under feeder-free conditions with media containing essential growth factors such as leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) for mouse ESCs or fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) and Activin A for human ESCs.
- Mechanism of Pluripotency:
- Pluripotency is regulated by transcriptional networks (e.g., OCT4/NANOG/SOX2) and epigenetic modifications like DNA methylation and histone acetylation.
Applications of Embryonic Stem Cells
- Regenerative Medicine:
- Cardiology: Differentiation into cardiomyocytes for myocardial infarction therapy.
- Neurology: Use in creating neurons for neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.
- Diabetes: Development of insulin-producing beta cells for Type 1 diabetes treatment.
- Disease Modeling:
- Generation of patient-specific cell lines to study the pathophysiology of genetic disorders.
- Drug Discovery and Toxicology:
- ESCs serve as a platform for high-throughput screening of pharmacological compounds.
- Developmental Biology:
- Understanding the molecular pathways of differentiation and early human development.
Embryonic Stem Cells represent a transformative avenue in biology and medicine, holding the potential to revolutionize treatments for numerous diseases while advancing our understanding of human development.
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