Nuclear Reprogramming Flashcards
What is nuclear reprogramming?
The process of reverting differentiated cells back to a pluripotent embryonic state.
Who is considered the father of nuclear reprogramming?
John Gurdon.
What does potency refer to in cell biology?
The ability of a cell to differentiate into different cell types.
What are the levels of potency?
- Totipotent
- Pluripotent
- Bipotent
- Unipotent
What is the significance of the Waddington Landscape?
It illustrates the decreasing potency of cells over time as they differentiate.
What did Hans Driesch contribute to embryology?
Demonstrated that each cell at the two-cell or four-cell stage is totipotent.
What were the baby hair ligature experiments?
Experiments by Hans Spemann showing the developmental potential of early embryos.
What did Robert Briggs and Thomas King achieve in 1952?
Successfully cloned frog embryos from blastula stage nuclei.
What did John Gurdon demonstrate in his 1962 study?
The developmental capacity of nuclei taken from intestinal epithelium cells of feeding tadpoles.
What is the significance of Dolly the sheep?
First mammal cloned from an adult somatic cell via nuclear transfer.
What are embryonic stem cells (ES cells)?
Pluripotent cells derived from the epiblast of pre-implantation blastocyst embryos.
What breakthrough did Shinya Yamanaka achieve?
Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) from differentiated cells without nuclear transplantation.
What Nobel Prize did Shinya Yamanaka and John Gurdon receive?
Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2012 for their work on nuclear reprogramming.
Fill in the blank: The epiblast cells of pre-implantation blastocyst embryos are _______.
[pluripotent]
What practical applications do embryonic stem cells have?
- Study development in vitro
- Generate genetically modified animals
- Generate teratomas
True or False: Cells lose genetic material over time during development.
False.
What is the potential of induced pluripotent stem cells?
- Disease modeling
- Cell replacement therapies with no immunological rejection
Who were the recipients of the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2007?
Mario Capecchi, Martin Evans, Oliver Smithies for work on genetic approaches using embryonic stem cells.
What is the main source of pluripotent embryonic stem cells?
Epiblast cells of pre-implantation blastocyst embryos.
What did Yoshiki Sasai contribute to stem cell research?
Developed methods to grow brain structures from embryonic stem cells in 3D cultures.
What is the difference between totipotent and pluripotent cells?
Totipotent cells can give rise to all cell types including extraembryonic tissues, while pluripotent cells can form all somatic and germ cells but not extraembryonic tissues.
What are organoids?
3D structures derived from stem cells to study development, disease states, and organ pathologies.
What is the significance of the 2006 and 2007 papers by Shinya Yamanaka and Kazutoshi Takahashi?
Described the induction of pluripotent stem cells from mouse and human fibroblasts.
What is the significance of the term ‘chimaeras’ in stem cell research?
Organisms formed from cells of two different genotypes, often used to study developmental processes.
