Methodology
A protocol to assess cell cycle and apoptosis in human and mouse pluripotent cells
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* Corresponding author: Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte belmonte@salk.edu
1 Center of Regenerative Medicine in Barcelona, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
2 Current Address: Vall d' Hebron Research Institute, Xcelia and Banc de Sang i Teixits, Passeig Vall d'Hebron, 119 - 129, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
3 Current Address: Affiliation with Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, Lowy Packer Building 405 Liverpool St, Darlinghurst New South Wales 2010, Australia
4 Gene Expression Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, 10010 North Torrey Pines Rd., La Jolla, California 92037, USA
Cell Communication and Signaling 2011, 9:8 doi:10.1186/1478-811X-9-8
Published: 11 April 2011Abstract
Embryonic stem cells (ESC) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) present a great opportunity to treat and model human disease as a cell replacement therapy. There is a growing pressure to understand better the signal transduction pathways regulating pluripotency and self-renewal of these special cells in order to deliver a safe and reliable cell based therapy in the near future. Many signal transduction pathways converge on two major cell functions associated with self-renewal and pluripotency: control of the cell cycle and apoptosis, although a standard method is lacking across the field. Here we present a detailed protocol to assess the cell cycle and apoptosis of ESC and iPSCs as a single reference point offering an easy to use standard approach across the field.