Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation

The University of Chicago

Cedars-sinai Medical Center

Sean Paul Palecek

Xiaojun Lance Lian

Eric V Shusta

Timothy Joseph Kamp

Jeffrey C Mohr

Xiaoping Bao

Nicholas Lawrence Abbott

Christopher John Murphy

Nathan Lockwood

Juan J Depablo

Elise Huang

Samira M Azarin

Stephen Joseph Kron

Ethan S Lippmann

Jianhua Zhang

Tongcheng Qian

Shawn B Brueggemeier

Samuel Helmer Gellman

Clive N Svendsen

Juan Jose De Pablo

Gad Vatine

William C Pomerantz

Juan DePablo

Amy J Karlsson

Scott G Canfield

Matthew Stebbins

Ying Nie

Stephen Brian Henry Kent

Laurie Parker

Gad D Vatine

Samira Azarin

The present invention provides methods and kits for differentiating podocytes from pluripotent stem cells and from other cell types.

Method of differentiating human pluripotent stem cells to podocytes

A method of creating an isogenic multicellular blood-brain barrier model from iPSCs is disclosed.

Isogenic blood-brain barrier model

A population of brain pericyte-like cells, wherein the cells express pericyte markers but do not express ACTA2 and wherein the cells are generated from hPSCs, is disclosed herein.

Method of creating human pluripotent stem cell derived brain pericyte-like cells

Methods for generating high-yield, high-purity epicardial cells are described. Wnt/&#x3b2;-catenin signaling is first activated in human cardiac progenitor cells, by, for example, inhibiting Gsk-3 to induce differentiation into epicardial cells. Methods for long-term in vitro maintenance of human cardiac progenitor cell-derived epicardial cells and method comprising chemically defined, xeno-free, and albumin-free culture conditions are also provided.

Methods for epicardial differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells

In one embodiment, the present invention is a method of creating a fully-human blood-brain barrier (BBB) model, comprising the steps of (a) obtaining a mixture of neural cells and brain microvascular endothelial cells (BMECs), wherein the neural cells and BMECs that comprise the mixture were produced from the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs); (b) purifying BMECs from the mixture of neural cells and BMECs of step (a); and (c) co-culturing the purified BMECs with a cell type selected from the group consisting of pericytes, astrocytes and differentiated neural progenitor cells (NPCs), wherein a blood brain barrier model is created.

Retinoic acid enhanced human stem cell derived blood brain barrier model

Methods for generating functional brain microvascular endothelial cells (BMECs) under chemically defined, serum-free conditions are provided. In particular, efficient and cost-effective methods for generating functional BMECs under chemically defined culture conditions are provided. BMECs obtained according to the methods provided herein are suitable for in vitro blood brain barrier (BBB) formation.

Methods for differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells to brain microvascular endothelial cells

A model blood brain barrier obtained from hPSCs is disclosed.

Human blood-brain barrier endothelial cells derived from pluripotent stem cells and blood-brain barrier model thereof

Methods for generating high-yield, high-purity cardiomyocyte progenitors or cardiomyocytes from pluripotent cells are described. Wnt/&#x3b2;-catenin signaling is first activated in pluripotent cells, by, for example, inhibiting Gsk-3 to obtain a first population of cells. Wnt/&#x3b2;-catenin signaling is then inhibited in the first cell population to induce cardiogenesis. One or more of these steps is performed under defined, albumin-free culture conditions.

Chemically defined albumin-free conditions for cardiomyocyte differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells

Methods for generating high-yield, high-purity cardiomyocyte progenitors or cardiomyocytes from pluripotent cells are described. Wnt/&#x3b2;-catenin signaling is first activated in pluripotent cells, e.g., by inhibition of Gsk-3 to obtain a first population of cells. Wnt/&#x3b2;-catenin signaling is then inhibited in the first cell population to induce cardiogenesis under fully defined, growth factor free culture conditions.

Generation of cardiomyocytes from human pluripotent stem cells

Methods for generating human endothelial cells from human pluripotent stem cells under defined conditions in the absence of VEGF are described. Wnt/&#x3b2;-catenin signaling is activated in human pluripotent stem cells for a defined period, e.g., by inhibition of Gsk3, and then cultured without further exogenous activation of Wnt/&#x3b2;-catenin signaling to obtain a cell population containing human endothelial cells.

Simplified methods for generating endothelial cells from human pluripotent stem cells under defined conditions

The present invention is directed to the design, synthesis and use of various &#x3b2;-peptides exhibiting antifungal activity. The &#x3b2;-peptides are relatively short in length, adopt globally amphiphilic conformations, and cause little lysis of human red blood cells at concentrations that kill, a common human fungal pathogen.

Beta-peptides with antifungal activity

Methods for culturing the pluripotent stem cells to undergo epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and for generating high-yield, high-purity cardiomyocyte cultures from pluripotent stem cells are described. Pluripotent stem cells are cultured on a support with an overlaid matrix and, optionally, exposed to one or more factors to induce epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and cardiogenesis.

Cardiac differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells under defined conditions using matrix overlay methods

A three-dimensional microwell system that supports long term pluripotent cell culture and formation of homogeneous embryoid bodies (EBs) is described. Microwell-cultured pluripotent cells remain viable and undifferentiated for several weeks in culture and maintain undifferentiated replication when passaged to Matrigel&#xae;-coated, tissue culture-treated polystyrene dishes. Microwell-cultured pluripotent cells maintain pluripotency, differentiating to each of the three embryonic germ layers. Pluripotent cell aggregates released from microwells can be passaged for undifferentiated replication or differentiated to monodisperse EBs. The ability to constrain pluripotent cell growth in three dimensions advantageously provides for more efficient, reproducible culture of undifferentiated cells, high-throughput screening, and the ability to direct pluripotent cell differentiation by generating monodisperse EBs of a desired size and shape. Cardiomyocyte-rich EBs are obtained from pluripotent cells cultured in microwells of defined size and shape.

Growing community of inventors

Verona, WI, United States of America

Sean Paul Palecek