Chemical reprogramming of mouse embryonic and adult fibroblast into endoderm lineage [Developmental Biology]

We report here an approach to redirect somatic cell fate under chemically defined conditions without transcription factors. We start by converting mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) to epithelial-like cells (ciELC) with chemicals and growth factors. Subsequent cell fate mapping reveals a robust induction of SOX17 in the resulting ELCs that can be further reprogrammed to endodermal progenitor cells (ciEPC). Interestingly, these cells can self-renew in vitro and further differentiate into albumin-producing hepatocytes that can rescue mice from acute live injury. Our results demonstrate a rational approach to convert MEFs to hepatocytes and suggest that this mechanism-driven approach may be generalized for other cells.

from # All Medicine by Alexandros G. Sfakianakis via Alexandros G.Sfakianakis on Inoreader http://ift.tt/2jOHuOn
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