Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 11, 2026

Cell Surface Marker Mediated Purification of iPS Cell Intermediates from a Reprogrammable Mouse Model
Published on: September 6, 2014
Functional genomics reveals a BMP-driven mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition in the initiation of somatic cell
Payman Samavarchi-Tehrani1, Azadeh Golipour, Laurent David
1Center for Systems Biology, Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X5, Canada.
Abstract:
Somatic cells can be reprogrammed to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) by expression of defined embryonic factors. However, little is known of the molecular mechanisms underlying the reprogramming process. Here we explore somatic cell reprogramming by exploiting a secondary mouse embryonic fibroblast model that forms iPSCs with high efficiency upon inducible expression of Oct4, Klf4, c-Myc, and Sox2. Temporal analysis of gene expression revealed that reprogramming is a multistep process that is characterized by initiation, maturation, and stabilization phases. Functional analysis by systematic RNAi screening further uncovered a key role for BMP signaling and the induction of mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition (MET) during the initiation phase. We show that this is linked to BMP-dependent induction of miR-205 and the miR-200 family of microRNAs that are key regulators of MET. These studies thus define a multistep mechanism that incorporates a BMP-miRNA-MET axis during somatic cell reprogramming. PAPERCLIP:
Related Concept Videos
Somatic to iPS Cell Reprogramming
Methods of Nuclear Reprogramming
Chromatin Modification in iPS Cells
Compact chromatin makes reprogramming difficult. Enzymes, such as histone demethylases and acetyltransferases, are often added during reprogramming to loosen the chromatin, making the DNA more accessible to transcription factors. Molecules that inhibit histone...
Forced Transdifferentiation
Artificial transdifferentiation occurs...
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...
Introduction to Nuclear Reprogramming

