Derivation of ringed seal (Phoca hispida) induced multipotent stem cells

Abstract

Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells have been produced just for a few species among order Carnivora: snow leopard, Bengal tiger, serval, jaguar, cat, dog, ferret, and American mink. For the first time, we derived the ringed seal (Phoca hispida) iPS-like cells. We had shown the expression of pluripotency marker gene Rex1. Ringed seal iPS-like cells were able to differentiate into derivatives of endoderm (expression of AFP), mesoderm (adipocytes and osteocytes), and trophectoderm (expression of Cdx2). To confirm pluripotency, we need to differentiate cells into ectoderm cell types, for instance into neurons.

A menagerie of stem-cell models

“…Another option is to clone the species' own genes to make the Yamanaka factors, says stem-cell researcher Aleksei Menzorov at the Russian Academy of Sciences in Novosibirsk. But that's hard for many species, including the ringed seals (Phoca hispida) Menzorov studies 4 , because genome sequences aren't always available. "With limited resources, it's easier to use standard Yamanaka factors," he says.…”