January 30, 2018
Keio University School of Medicine
Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED)
Professor Minoru Ko and his team at The Sakaguchi Laboratory (Department of Systems Medicine), Keio University School of Medicine, have successfully developed a "cell differentiation RNA cocktail" that can differentiate human pluripotent stem cells, such as ES cells and iPS cells (hereafter, pluripotent stem cells), into skeletal muscle cells in a short period of five days with a high success rate of over 80%.
This "cell differentiation RNA cocktail" is a combination of synthetic RNA for transcription factors and small interfering RNA (hereafter, siRNA). By simply adding it to pluripotent stem cells, it is possible to generate functional skeletal muscle cells that possess sarcomere structures, the units that form muscle fibers, and the ability to fuse.
Because this method does not damage the cell's genomic DNA, it is considered safer than methods that differentiate pluripotent stem cells into the target cells by inserting genes into the genome. Furthermore, compared to conventional methods that introduce transcription factors alone, this method has succeeded in significantly increasing efficiency, enabling the production of the large quantities of skeletal muscle cells required for cell transplantation and drug discovery screening. The results of this research are expected to be useful not only for basic research on skeletal muscle cells but also for elucidating the pathophysiology of various diseases caused by skeletal muscle abnormalities and for the development of therapeutic drugs.
These results were published in the online edition of "Scientific Reports" on January 19, 2018 (UK time).
The full press release is available below.