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Updated: Apr 8, 2026
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Chemical Reversion of Conventional Human Pluripotent Stem Cells to a Naïve-like State with Improved Multilineage Differentiation Potency
Published on: June 10, 2018
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The Current State of Naïve Human Pluripotency
Benjamin T Dodsworth1, Rowan Flynn1, Sally A Cowley1
1Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, United Kingdom.
Stem Cells (Dayton, Ohio)
|June 30, 2015
Summary
Researchers have developed methods to derive naïve pluripotent stem cells from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs). These ground state cells closely resemble early embryonic cells, facilitating gene editing and differentiation.
Area of Science:
- Stem cell biology
- Developmental biology
- Epigenetics
Background:
- Naïve pluripotency is an early embryonic cell state, distinct from the primed state of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs).
- Deriving naïve hPSCs is crucial for advancing gene editing and differentiation protocols.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review protocols for deriving and maintaining naïve human pluripotent stem cells.
- To correlate these findings with relevant biological pathways.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing protocols for naïve hPSC derivation using transgene expression or specific media formulations.
- Analysis of maintenance conditions involving growth factors and dual kinase inhibitors (GSK3β and MEK).
Main Results:
- Protocols now enable the derivation of naïve hPSCs, mirroring the preimplantation epiblast.
- Maintenance requires specific combinations of growth factors (bFGF, LIF) and inhibitors.
- Similarities in endogenous retroviral expression and RNA-seq data confirm the ground state's biological relevance.
Conclusions:
- Naïve human pluripotent stem cells can be successfully derived and maintained in vitro.
- These cells closely resemble the in vivo preimplantation epiblast, suggesting the naïve state is not an artifact.
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