Embryonic implantation comprises a dynamic and complicated series of events, which takes place only when the maternal uterine endometrium is in a receptive state. Blastocysts reaching the uterus communicate with the uterine endometrium to implant within a narrow time window. Interplay among various signalling molecules and transcription factors under the control of ovarian hormones is necessary...

Transplanting vascular endothelial cells (ECs) to support metabolism and express regenerative paracrine factors is a strategy to treat vasculopathies and to promote tissue regeneration. However, transplantation strategies have been challenging to develop, because ECs are difficult to culture and little is known about how to direct them to stably integrate into vasculature. Here we show that onl...

We report a novel zygotic gene encoding a Xenopus endodermal nuclear factor, Xenf. Expression of Xenf starts at the late blastula stages and is decreased after gastrulation. Xenf shows no structural homology to any known proteins. When GFP-tagged Xenf is overexpressed in Xenopus cells, Xenf protein is localized to the nucleus, associating closely with the chromosomes. In animal cap assays, Xenf...

In the experimental group (shh inhibited group), there were significant decreases in the expression of Oct4, Nanog, Shh, GATA4, Brachyury and Goosecoid, while increases were observed for TAT and Pdx1. The expression of Sox17 did not differ between two control and experimental groups. In experimental group, the amount of GSC positive cells was somehow lower but it seems that there was no differe...

We demonstrate that the pluripotency gene OCT4 has a role in regulating differentiation via Wnt signaling. OCT4 expression levels in human embryonic stem cells increases transiently during the first 24 hr of in vitro differentiation, with OCT4 occupancy increasing at endoderm regulators such as SOX17 and FOXA2. This increased occupancy correlates with loss of the PRC2 complex and the inhibitory...

BACKGROUND Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are associated with prognosis in a variety of human cancers and have been proposed as a liquid biopsy for follow-up examinations. We show that tumor suppressor and metastasis suppressor genes are epigenetically silenced in CTCs isolated from peripheral blood of breast cancer patients. METHODS We obtained peripheral blood from 56 patients with operable...

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) and EMT-type cells, which share molecular characteristics with CSCs, have been believed to play critical roles in tumor metastasis. Although much progress has been garnered in elucidating the molecular pathways that trigger EMT, stemness and metastasis, a number of key mechanistic gaps remain elusive. In the study, miR-371-5p was obviously down-regulated in primary CRC ...

Early steps for cardiac specification are problematic for the study of mammalian embryos, which has favored using pluripotent cells that recapitulate cardiac myogenesis. Furthermore, circuits governing cardiac specification have relevance to the application of ES cells and other cells for heart repair. In mouse teratocarcinoma cells, canonical Wnts that inhibit heart formation in avian or amphi...

Endoderm specification in zebrafish is mediated by the zygotic transcription factors Bon/Mixer, Faust/Gata5, Casanova and Sox17, whose expression is induced by Nodal signalling. Bon/Mixer and Gata5 require Casanova in order to promote endoderm formation and all three factors act upstream of sox17, but it is not clear whether Casanova acts downstream of or in parallel to Bon/Mixer and Gata5. An ...