Forced expression of the homeobox-containing gene Pem blocks differentiation of embryonic stem cells

Similarities in the differentiation of mouse embryos and ES cell embryoid bodies suggest that aspects of early mammalian embryogenesis can be studied in ES cell embryoid bodies. In an effort to understand the regulation of cellular differentiation during early mouse embryogenesis, we altered the expression of the Pem homeobox-containing gene in ES cells. Pem is normally expressed in the preimplantation embryo and expressed in a lineage-restricted fashion following implantation, suggesting a role for Pem in regulating cellular differentiation in the early embryo. Here, we show that the forced expression of Pem from the mouse Pgk-1 promoter in ES cells blocks the in vitro and in vivo differentiation of the cells. In particular, embryoid bodies produced from these Pgk-Pem ES cells do not differentiate into primitive endoderm or embryonic ectoderm, which are prominent features of early embryoid bodies from normal ES cells. This Pgk-Pem phenotype is also different from the null phenotype, as embryoid bodies derived from ES cells in which endogenous Pem gene expression has been blocked show a pattern of differentiation similar to that of normal ES cells. When the Pgk-Pem ES cells were introduced into subcutaneous sites of nude mice, only undifferentiated EC-like cells were found in the teratomas derived from the injected cells. The Pem-dependent block of ES cell differentiation appears to be cell autonomous; Pgk-Pem ES cells did not differentiate when mixed with normal, differentiating ES cells. A block to ES cell differentiation, resulting from the forced expression of Pem, can also be produced by the forced expression of the nonhomeodomain region of Pem. These studies are consistent with a role for Pem in regulating the transition between undifferentiated and differentiated cells of the early mouse embryo.