StemLight™ Pluripotency Antibody Kit

Pluripotency is the ability of a cell to differentiate into cell types of the three germ layers, the endoderm, ectoderm and mesoderm. It is a property shared by embryonic stem cells, embryonic carcinoma and induced pluripotent cells.Oct-4, Sox2 and Nanog are key transcriptional regulators that are highly expressed in pluripotent cells (1). Together they form a transcriptional network that maintains cells in a pluripotent state (2,3). Over-expression of Oct-4 and Sox2 along with Klf4 and c- Myc can induce pluripotency in both mouse and human somatic cells, highlighting their roles as key regulators of the transcrip- tional network necessary for renewal and pluripotency (4-5). It has also been demonstrated that overexpression of Oct-4, Sox2, Nanog and Lin28 can induce pluripotency in human somatic cells (6). Upon differentiation of pluripotent cultures, expression of Oct-4, Nanog and Sox2 is downregulated.SSEA4, TRA-1-81 and TRA-1-60 antibodies recognize antigens expressed on the cell surface of all pluripotent cells. SSEA4 recognizes a glycolipid carbohydrate epitope (7). TRA-1-60(S) and TRA-1-81 antibodies recognize different proteoglycan epitopes on variants of the same protein, podocalyxin (8). These epitopes are neuraminadase sensitive and resistant, respectively. Reactivity of SSEA4, TRA-1-81 and TRA-1-60 antibodies with their respective cell surface markers are lost upon differentiation of pluripotent cells, corresponding with a loss of pluripotent potential (9). 1.Looijenga, L.H. et al. (2003) Cancer Res 63, 2244-50. 2.Pesce, M. and Schöler, H.R. (2001) Stem Cells 19, 271-8. 3.Pan, G. and Thomson, J.A. (2007) Cell Res 17, 42-9. 4.Takahashi, K. and Yamanaka, S. (2006) Cell 126, 663-76. 5.Okita, K. et al. (2007) Nature 448, 313-7. 6.Yu, J. et al. (2007) Science 318, 1917-20. 7.Henderson, J.K. et al. (2002) Stem Cells 20, 329-37. 8.Draper, J.S. et al. (2002) J Anat 200, 249-58. 9.Schopperle, W.M. and DeWolf, W.C. (2007) Stem Cells 25, 723-30.