1. introduction and definitions Flashcards
when was the first idea that organs could be regenerated?
In Greek mythology, Prometheus and liver regeneration
when was the first BM transplant?
1950s - irradiated dogs that received BM transplant could recover
what experiments did John Gurdon conduct in the 1960s?
Nuclear transfer experiments - somatic nucleus of tadpole gut cell transferred into oocyte and from this an entire frog was generated
what two things did John Gurdon’s experiments show?
- they showed that it was possible to take a somatic differentiated nucleus and reprogram it to an embryonic like state
- they showed that the genome in each cell has all the information to convert a cell into an entire organism
where are embryonic stem cells derived from?
the inner cell mass of blastocysts
what are embryonic carcinoma cells?
these are stem cells of teratocarcinomas
give an example of a stem cell based tissue and how long does it take for it to entirely regenerate?
the skin takes one month to entirely regenerate
define lineage
the genealogical pedigree of cells related through cell division. cells of the same lineage may be derived from a common progenitor.
what is lineage tracing?
labelling a population of similar cells and seeing what these cell types give rise to
define clones
clones are the progeny of a single cell.
what is clonal analysis?
labelling a cell and seeing what it gives rise to
define differentiated cell
this is a cell with a specific function that is usually post-mitotic.
why is differentiated usually a multi-step process?
because there is normally a large difference between stem cells and differentiated cells
what is lineage commitment?
the restricted ability to give rise to a specific set of differentiated cells
what is the potency of a cell?
how many lineages a cell can produce
what is a cell that can give rise two lineages called?
bi-potent
what is self-renewal?
the ability to undergo numerous cycles of cells division while maintaining the undifferentiated state
what occurs to self-renewal of SC in the ageing process?
it becomes less efficient
what is special about embryonic stem cell self renewal that does not occur in tissue stem cells self renewal?
embryonic stem cell self-renewal, unlike tissue stem cell self-renewal, is perfect. this means that ESC can be cultured forever.
what is flow cytometry?
fluorescence activated cell sorting
define the flow cytometry process? (4 steps)
- dissociated tissue
- label cells with antibody to specific marker of interest
- put cells in flow cytometry machine
- laser pushes out cells with antibody associated
once cells are sorted by flow cytometry, how are they identified?
RNA-seq if cells are dead
if you are careful and they are still alive then you can culture them
what are transit amplifying cells?
uni-potent, usually highly proliferative cells
what is a stem cell?
stem cells are multipotent, self-renewing entities that are able give rise to specialised cells
