Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 17, 2026

A Simple Method to Identify Kinases That Regulate Embryonic Stem Cell Pluripotency by High-throughput Inhibitor Screening
Published on: May 12, 2017
Regulation of neural stem/progenitor cell maintenance by PI3K and mTOR
Atsushi Sato1, Jun Sunayama, Ken-ichiro Matsuda
1Department of Molecular Cancer Science, Yamagata University School of Medicine, 2-2-2 lida-nishi, Yamagata 990-9585, Japan; Department of Neurosurgery, Yamagata University School of Medicine, Yamagata 990-9585, Japan.
Abstract:
Control of stem cell state and differentiation of neural stem/progenitor cells is essential for proper development of the nervous system. EGF and FGF2 play important roles in the control of neural stem/progenitor cells, but the underlying mechanism still remains unclear. Here we show, using in vitro primary cultures of mouse neural stem/progenitor cells, that both PI3K and mTOR are activated by EGF/FGF2 but that inhibiting the activation of either PI3K or mTOR alone results in only reduced proliferation of neural stem/progenitor cells without affecting their stem cell state, namely, the capacity to self-renew. However, significantly, concurrent inhibition of PI3K and mTOR promoted exit from the stem cell state together with astrocytic differentiation of neural stem/progenitor cells. These findings suggest that PI3K and mTOR are involved in the EGF/FGF2-mediated maintenance of neural stem/progenitor cells and that they may act in parallel and independent pathways, complementing and backing up each other to maintain the stem cell state.
Related Concept Videos
PI3K/mTOR/AKT Signaling Pathway
mTOR Signaling and Cancer Progression
The mTOR pathway or the...
Maintenance of the ES Cell State
Multipotency of Hematopoietic Stem Cells
Abnormal Proliferation
Negative Regulator Molecules
