[Cloning of genes activated in murine embryonal stem cells during differentiation in suspension]

Embryonic stem cells (ESC) are widely employed as an experimental model owing to the similarity of molecular events occurring in their in vitro differentiation and in early embryo development. Subtraction hybridization was used to clone genes that display enhanced transcription in simple embryoid bodies (EB), which are formed on ESC culturing in suspension and are characterized by the presence of endodermal cells. The cloned sequences proved to include three new genes lacking homologs in databases. Northern analysis of the transcript tissue distribution in adult mice confirmed higher expression of these genes in differentiated cells compared with ESC.