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This section will display important information on the field of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSCs):

Definition

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS cells or iPSCs) are a type of pluripotent stem cell artificially derived from a non-pluripotent cell, typically an adult somatic cell such as a skin cell or any other, by inducing a "forced" expression of specific genes. iPSCs are similar to natural pluripotent stem cells, such as embryonic stem (ES) cells, in many respects, such as the expression of certain stem cell genes and proteins, chromatin patterns (DNA methylation and histone modifications), doubling time, embryoid body formation, teratoma formation, viable chimera formation, and potency and differentiability, but there are some differences that have been uncovered recently. iPSCs were first produced in 2006 from mouse cells and in 2007 from human cells and this was an important advance in stem cell research. It may allow researchers to treat some diseases without the controversial use of embryos (generally obtained from fertilization clinics generating a political and religious controversy).

How iPSCs are generated?

iPSCs are typically derived by transfection (that means “infusion”) of certain stem cell-associated genes into non-pluripotent cells (although this technique is becoming less popular since it is known to be prone to cancer formation), such as adult fibroblasts. Transfection is typically achieved through viral vectors, such as retroviruses using genetic engineering to force the expression of a group of genes in the differentiated cells so they can become iPSCs. Transfected genes include the master transcriptional regulators Oct-3/4 (Pou5f1) and Sox2, although it is suggested that other genes enhance the efficiency of induction. The genes used to generate iPSCs can also vary depending on the cell type that is used to procude iPSCs.

What are the potential and medical applications?

The potential and medical applications are enormous. iPSCs generated by different groups have been tested to treat stroke, cardiomyopaties, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases among others. However, there is some concern on the safety of the use of iPSCs since some reports have been showing that in some cases they have features that resemble cancer cells. Even with this caveat, iPSC research has been a very hot topic in biomedicine lately.

Examples of companies that are developing therapies based on iPSCs:

Axiogenesis

The business objective of Axiogenesis lies in the area of pre-clinical (red) biotechnology, specifically in the production of stem cell-based assays that enable drug development. These innovative and proprietary assays accelerate and improve drug candidate selection, lower costs and thus increase overall drug development efficiency. At present the main focus is heart muscle disease (cardiomyopathy).

Cellular Dynamics

Cellular Dynamics is the world's largest producer of fully functional human cells derived from induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. In a field only a few decades old, CDI scientists tout more than 300 years combined of stem cell experience. Building on this expertise, our iCell® products provide industrialized quantities of terminally differentiated human cells enabling basic research, efficient drug discovery programs, and reliably predictive toxicity and efficacy screening through in vitro clinical trials.

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