Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 12, 2026

Suppression of Pro-fibrotic Signaling Potentiates Factor-mediated Reprogramming of Mouse Embryonic Fibroblasts into Induced Cardiomyocytes
Published on: June 3, 2018
Geometric control of myogenic cell fate
Elena M de Juan-Pardo1, Mike Bao-Trong Hoang, Irina M Conboy
1Department of Bioengineering, University of California at Berkeley, Berkley, CA, USA.
Abstract:
This work combines expertise in stem cell biology and bioengineering to define the system for geometric control of proliferation and differentiation of myogenic progenitor cells. We have created an artificial niche of myogenic progenitor cells, namely, modified extracellular matrix (ECM) substrates with spatially embedded growth or differentiation factors (GF, DF) that predictably direct muscle cell fate in a geometric pattern. Embedded GF and DF signal progenitor cells from specifically defined areas on the ECM successfully competed against culture media for myogenic cell fate determination at a clearly defined boundary. Differentiation of myoblasts into myotubes is induced in growth-promoting medium, myotube formation is delayed in differentiation-promoting medium, and myogenic cells, at different stages of proliferation and differentiation, can be induced to coexist adjacently in identical culture media. This method can be used to identify molecular interactions between cells in different stages of myogenic differentiation, which are likely to be important determinants of tissue repair. The designed ECM niches can be further developed into a vehicle for transplantation of myogenic progenitor cells maintaining their regenerative potential. Additionally, this work may also serve as a general model to engineer synthetic cellular niches to harness the regenerative potential of organ stem cells.
More Related Videos
11:02Identification and Analysis of Myogenic Progenitors In Vivo During Acute Skeletal Muscle Injury by High-Dimensional Single-Cell Mass Cytometry
Published on: December 1, 2023
10:05Improved Generation of Induced Cardiomyocytes Using a Polycistronic Construct Expressing Optimal Ratio of Gata4, Mef2c and Tbx5
Published on: November 13, 2015
Related Concept Videos
Formation of Muscle Fibers from Myoblasts
Muscle progenitor cells (MPCs) are formed from the myotomes. MPCs express genes that encode the transcription factors Pax3 and Pax7. Along with Pax 3/7, other transcription factors...
Master Transcription Regulators
Determination
Combinatorial Gene Control
The expression of more than 30,000 genes is controlled by approximately 2000-3000 transcription factors. This is possible because a single transcription factor can recognize more than one regulatory sequence. The specificity in gene...
Smooth Muscle Contraction
The onset of contraction is triggered by an increase in calcium ions within the sarcoplasm, similar to the process in striated muscle. However, smooth muscles have a relatively smaller reservoir of the sarcoplasmic...
Cells Coordinate Growth and Proliferation