Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 7, 2026

Generation of Human Cardiomyocytes: A Differentiation Protocol from Feeder-free Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
Published on: June 28, 2013
A Comprehensive TALEN-Based Knockout Library for Generating Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Based Models for
Ioannis Karakikes1, Vittavat Termglinchan1, Diana A Cepeda1
1From the Stanford Cardiovascular Institute (I.K., V.T., J.L., S.D., I.I., M.A., R.S., H.W., N.M., N.-Y.S., T.S., N.W., K.D.W., E.M., J.C.W.), Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery (I.K.), Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine (V.T., J.C.W.), CA; Institute of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine (D.A.C., V.S., J.C.W.), Departments of Pediatrics (A.H., M.H.P.), Pathology (K.D.W.), and Obstetrics and Gynecology (V.S.), Stanford University School of Medicine, CA; Berlin Institute of Health, Germany (S.D.); and Max Delbrueck Center, Berlin, Germany (S.D.).
This study utilized transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to create gene knockouts for studying cardiovascular diseases. The developed methods offer a valuable resource for cardiovascular research.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Genetics
- Stem Cell Biology
- Genome Editing
Background:
- Transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs) enable precise, site-specific genetic modification in the human genome.
- Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) combined with genome editing offer a powerful in vitro model for cardiovascular disease research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate TALEN constructs for knocking out genes associated with cardiomyopathies and congenital heart diseases.
- To demonstrate the utility of TALEN-mediated gene knockout in human iPSCs for disease modeling and functional studies.
Main Methods:
- Designed TALEN constructs targeting 88 human genes linked to cardiomyopathies and congenital heart diseases.
- Engineered TALEN pairs to induce double-strand DNA breaks for gene knockout via frameshift mutations.
- Validated gene knockout efficiency and specificity in human iPSCs for selected genes (TNNT2, LMNA/C, TBX5, MYH7, ANKRD1, NKX2.5).
Main Results:
- All TALEN constructs demonstrated high activity and efficient disruption of target loci.
- Successfully generated knockout human iPSCs for 6 key cardiovascular genes.
- Ameliorated dilated cardiomyopathy phenotype in patient-specific iPSC-derived cardiac myocytes by targeting a pathogenic mutation.
- Modeled Holt-Oram syndrome in iPSC-cardiac myocytes and identified novel TBX5-regulated pathways.
Conclusions:
- The combination of iPSCs and genome editing provides a powerful platform for investigating gene function and genetic variants in cardiovascular diseases.
- The developed TALEN constructs, strategies, and iPSC lines represent a validated resource for the cardiovascular research community.
More Related Videos
08:06Generation of Ventricular-Like HiPSC-Derived Cardiomyocytes and High-Quality Cell Preparations for Calcium Handling Characterization
Published on: January 17, 2020
09:23Generation, High-Throughput Screening, and Biobanking of Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiac Spheroids
Published on: March 10, 2023
Related Concept Videos
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
Somatic...
EPS and iPS Cells in Disease Research