Resveratrol enhances pluripotency of mouse embryonic stem cells by activating AMPK/Ulk1 pathway

Resveratrol, a natural polyphenolic compound, shows many beneficial effects in various animal models. It increases efficiency of somatic cell reprograming into iPSCs and contributes to cell differentiation. Here, we studied the effect of resveratrol on proliferation and pluripotency of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). Our results demonstrate that resveratrol induces autophagy in mESCs that is provided by the activation of the AMPK/Ulk1 pathway and the concomitant suppression of the activity of the mTORC1 signaling cascade. These events correlate with the enhanced expression of pluripotency markers Oct3/4, Sox2, Nanog, Klf4, SSEA-1 and alkaline phosphatase. Pluripotency is retained under resveratrol-caused retardation of cell proliferation. Given that the Ulk1 overexpression enhances pluripotency of mESCs, the available data evidence that mTOR/Ulk1/AMPK-autophagy network provides the resveratrol-mediated regulation of mESC pluripotency. The capability of resveratrol to support the mESC pluripotency provides a new approach for developing a defined medium for ESC culturing as well as for better understanding signaling events that govern self-renewal and pluripotency.