Max
07-15-2002, 04:38 PM
Preimplantation Human Embryos and Embryonic Stem Cells Show Comparable Expression of Stage-Specific Embryonic Antigens
J.K. Hendersona, J.S. Draperb, H.S. Bailliea, S. Fishelc, J.A. Thomsond, H. Moorea, P.W. Andrewsb
a Section of Reproductive Biology, The School of Medicine and Biomedical Science and
b Department of Biomedical Science, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK;
c Care Ltd, The Park Hospital, Arnold, Nottingham, UK;
d Wisconsin Regional Primate Research Center and Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA
Key Words: Human embryos· Embryonic stem cells· Differentiation· Cell surface markers
Correspondence: Peter W. Andrews, Ph.D., Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sheffield, S10 2TN, Sheffield, UK. Telephone: 44-0-114-222-4173; Fax: 44-0-114-222-2399; e-mail: p.w.andrews@sheffield.ac.uk
Cell-surface antigens provide invaluable tools for the identification of cells and for the analysis of cell differentiation. In particular, stage-specific embryonic antigens that are developmentally regulated during early embryogenesis are widely used as markers to monitor the differentiation of both mouse and human embryonic stem (ES) cells and their malignant counterparts, embryonic carcinoma (EC) cells. However, there are notable differences in the expression patterns of some such markers between human and mouse ES/EC cells, and hitherto it has been unclear whether this indicates significant differences between human and mouse embryos, or whether ES/EC cells correspond to distinct cell types within the early embryos of each species. We now show that human ES cells are characterized by the expression of the cell-surface antigens, SSEA3, SSEA4, TRA-1-60, and TRA-1-81, and by the lack of SSEA1, and that inner cell mass cells of the human blastocyst express a similar antigen profile, in contrast to the corresponding cells of the mouse embryo.
J.K. Hendersona, J.S. Draperb, H.S. Bailliea, S. Fishelc, J.A. Thomsond, H. Moorea, P.W. Andrewsb
a Section of Reproductive Biology, The School of Medicine and Biomedical Science and
b Department of Biomedical Science, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK;
c Care Ltd, The Park Hospital, Arnold, Nottingham, UK;
d Wisconsin Regional Primate Research Center and Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA
Key Words: Human embryos· Embryonic stem cells· Differentiation· Cell surface markers
Correspondence: Peter W. Andrews, Ph.D., Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Sheffield, S10 2TN, Sheffield, UK. Telephone: 44-0-114-222-4173; Fax: 44-0-114-222-2399; e-mail: p.w.andrews@sheffield.ac.uk
Cell-surface antigens provide invaluable tools for the identification of cells and for the analysis of cell differentiation. In particular, stage-specific embryonic antigens that are developmentally regulated during early embryogenesis are widely used as markers to monitor the differentiation of both mouse and human embryonic stem (ES) cells and their malignant counterparts, embryonic carcinoma (EC) cells. However, there are notable differences in the expression patterns of some such markers between human and mouse ES/EC cells, and hitherto it has been unclear whether this indicates significant differences between human and mouse embryos, or whether ES/EC cells correspond to distinct cell types within the early embryos of each species. We now show that human ES cells are characterized by the expression of the cell-surface antigens, SSEA3, SSEA4, TRA-1-60, and TRA-1-81, and by the lack of SSEA1, and that inner cell mass cells of the human blastocyst express a similar antigen profile, in contrast to the corresponding cells of the mouse embryo.