Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Maintenance of the ES Cell State01:14

Maintenance of the ES Cell State

The cells of the blastocyst inner cell mass only remain pluripotent for a short time. This state of pluripotency and self-renewal can be maintained in embryonic stem (ES) cell culture by adding specific chemicals or growth factors to ensure the cells can continue dividing and later differentiate into different cell types. In some cases, the cells are grown on a feeder layer of differentiated cells, which provides the growth factors and extracellular matrix components necessary for stem cell...
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...
Embryonic Stem Cells00:58

Embryonic Stem Cells

Embryonic stem (ES) cells are undifferentiated pluripotent cells, meaning they can produce any cell type in the body. This gives them tremendous potential in science and medicine since they can generate specific cell types for use in research or to replace body cells lost due to damage or disease.
Zygotic Development And Stem Cell Formation01:10

Zygotic Development And Stem Cell Formation

The development of all multicellular organisms starts with the fusion of haploid cells called sperm and egg to form a diploid zygote. A zygote is a totipotent cell that can develop into a complete organism. The zygote undergoes cell division or cleavage to form an 8-cell mass. Until this stage, the cells are spherical, loosely attached, and remain totipotent. Totipotent cells are capable of developing both the embryonic and the extraembryonic tissues. However, as they continue to divide, they...
Source And Potency Of Stem Cells01:27

Source And Potency Of Stem Cells

Stem cells are undifferentiated cells with extensive self-renewal properties that help them maintain their population during the fetal and adult stages of life. They can specialize in all cell types of the human body. However, their differential potential may vary and can be classified into five types. Stem cells can be (1) Totipotent, (2) Pluripotent, (3) Multipotent, (4) Oligopotent, and (5) Unipotent. Each stem cell has a specific origin; the fertilized egg or zygote is a totipotent cell and...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

MULTIDIMENSIONAL SPATIAL MAPPING OF EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX: CARTILAGINOUS-OSSEOUS COMPOSITE FORMATION, TENDON INTEGRATION AND VASCULARIZATION DURING SKELETAL GROWTH AND REPAIR.

Journal of bone and mineral research : the official journal of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research·2026
Same author

A Bispecific Anti-Fluorescein × Anti-CD3 T-cell Engager in Combination with Fluoresceinated Adaptors Enables Lysis of AML Cells.

Molecular cancer therapeutics·2026
Same author

Enhancement of CD117-Targeted Bispecific T-cell Engagement by CD33-Targeted Bispecific T-cell Costimulation in Acute Myeloid Leukemia.

Cancer research communications·2026
Same author

A bispecific anti-fluorescein x anti-CD3 T-cell engager in combination with fluoresceinated adaptors enables lysis of AML cells.

Molecular cancer therapeutics·2026
Same author

A genetic model of congenital intestinal atresia implicates Mypt1 in epithelial organisation.

Disease models & mechanisms·2026
Same author

ER-diffusion barriers exist in hematopoietic stem cell mitoses, but are not required for lysosomal asymmetric cell division.

Experimental hematology·2026
Same journal

Generation of two CASK patient-derived human induced pluripotent stem cell lines to study CASK-related disorders.

Stem cell research·2026
Same journal

Generation of an arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy-patient-derived iPS cell line with PKP2 and AKAP9 mutation (MUNIi022-A).

Stem cell research·2026
Same journal

Establishment and characterization of three human pluripotent stem cell lines from patients with spinocerebellar ataxia 27B (SCA27B).

Stem cell research·2026
Same journal

Characterization of induced pluripotent stem cell lines from patients of African American ancestry.

Stem cell research·2026
Same journal

Establishment of CRISPR/Cas9-edited LEMD2 knock-in (UKWCHFi001-B-1) and knock-out (UKWCHFi001-B-2) iPSC lines to investigate the mechanisms of LEMD2-associated cardiomyopathy.

Stem cell research·2026
Same journal

A human iPSC model with LATS1/2 knockdown (MUSIi012-A-9) for investigating Hippo signaling in stem cell.

Stem cell research·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 31, 2026

Patterning the Geometry of Human Embryonic Stem Cell Colonies on Compliant Substrates to Control Tissue-Level Mechanics
10:04

Patterning the Geometry of Human Embryonic Stem Cell Colonies on Compliant Substrates to Control Tissue-Level Mechanics

Published on: September 28, 2019

Functionally defined substates within the human embryonic stem cell compartment.

Peter D Tonge1, Masaki Shigeta, Timm Schroeder

  • 1Centre for Stem Cell Biology, Department of Biomedical Science, University of Sheffield, UK. tonge@lunenfeld.ca

Stem Cell Research
|July 19, 2011
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Human embryonic stem (ES) cells show instability in their undifferentiated state. Researchers identified distinct subpopulations based on SSEA3 expression, revealing varied neural differentiation responses in these human stem cells.

More Related Videos

Protocol for Human Blastoids Modeling Blastocyst Development and Implantation
12:09

Protocol for Human Blastoids Modeling Blastocyst Development and Implantation

Published on: August 10, 2022

Differentiation and Characterization of Neural Progenitors and Neurons from Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells
08:47

Differentiation and Characterization of Neural Progenitors and Neurons from Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

Published on: May 15, 2020

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 31, 2026

Patterning the Geometry of Human Embryonic Stem Cell Colonies on Compliant Substrates to Control Tissue-Level Mechanics
10:04

Patterning the Geometry of Human Embryonic Stem Cell Colonies on Compliant Substrates to Control Tissue-Level Mechanics

Published on: September 28, 2019

Protocol for Human Blastoids Modeling Blastocyst Development and Implantation
12:09

Protocol for Human Blastoids Modeling Blastocyst Development and Implantation

Published on: August 10, 2022

Differentiation and Characterization of Neural Progenitors and Neurons from Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells
08:47

Differentiation and Characterization of Neural Progenitors and Neurons from Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

Published on: May 15, 2020

Area of Science:

  • Stem cell biology
  • Developmental biology
  • Cellular differentiation

Background:

  • Human embryonic stem (ES) cells are prone to spontaneous differentiation under standard culture conditions.
  • The undifferentiated state of human ES cells is inherently unstable.
  • Heterogeneous expression of stage-specific embryonic antigen 3 (SSEA3) exists within human ES cell colonies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the functional properties of undifferentiated human ES cell subpopulations.
  • To examine the role of SSEA3 expression in defining distinct human ES cell states.
  • To determine if different human ES cell subpopulations exhibit varied responses to neural differentiation induction.

Main Methods:

  • Functional testing of single human ES cells.
  • Segregation of human ES cells into subpopulations based on SSEA3 expression levels (SSEA3-High, SSEA3-Low, SSEA3-Negative).
  • Assessment of interconvertibility and differentiation potential of these subpopulations, particularly along the neural lineage.

Main Results:

  • Undifferentiated human ES cells can be functionally segregated into SSEA3-High, SSEA3-Low, and SSEA3-Negative subpopulations.
  • These subpopulations are interconvertible.
  • Distinct subpopulations display different properties when induced to differentiate into neural cells.

Conclusions:

  • The undifferentiated state in human ES cells is not monolithic and comprises functionally discrete substates.
  • SSEA3 expression serves as a marker to distinguish these substates.
  • Human ES cell subpopulations exhibit differential responses to differentiation cues, impacting their developmental potential.