Genome maintenance and mutagenesis in embryonic stem cells

Qing Lin1, Sarah L Donahue, H Earl Ruley

  • 1Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Vanderbilt University, School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232-2363, USA.

Summary

Carcinogens can cause widespread loss of heterozygosity (LOH) in stem cells, suggesting LOH arises from genotoxic exposure rather than chromosomal instability. This finding is crucial for understanding nonhereditary cancers.

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Overview
Embryonic Stem Cells00:57

Embryonic Stem Cells

Embryonic stem (ES) cells were first discovered in mice in 1981 by Martin Evans. In 1998, James Thomson identified a method to isolate embryonic stem cells from humans. Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) are obtained from 3-5 day old embryos that remain unused after an in vitro fertilization procedure.
ES cells are grown in a culture medium where they can divide indefinitely, creating ES cell lines. Under certain conditions, ES cells can differentiate, either spontaneously into a variety of...