Species-Specific Enhancer Activity of OCT4 in Porcine Pluripotency: The Porcine OCT4 Reporter System Could Monitor Pluripotency in Porcine Embryo Development and Embryonic Stem Cells

Figure 3

Characterization of porcine embryonic stem cells with the porcine OCT4 reporter system. (a) Porcine embryonic stem cells with the OCT4 reporter system. (b) Embryoid bodies aggregated from porcine embryonic stem cells. (c) Comparison of gene expression related to pluripotency between undifferentiated embryonic stem cells and differentiated embryoid bodies. (d) Comparison of gene expression related to differentiation between undifferentiated embryonic stem cells and differentiated embryoid bodies. (e) SSEA4 and OCT4. (f) SSEA1 and SOX2 in porcine embryonic stem cells with or without the OCT4 reporter system. Pluripotency markers such as OCT4 and SOX2 and surface markers such as SSEA1 and SSEA4 coexpressed in pig embryonic stem cells with or without OCT4 reporter system. (g) Karyotyping of porcine embryonic stem cells with the OCT4 reporter system. Karyotyping showed that no chromosomal aberration occurred during in vitro culture. (h) Teratoma assay of porcine embryonic stem cells with the OCT4 reporter system. When injected subcutaneously into athymic nude mice, stem cells could generate into teratoma containing all three germ layers, such as nervous tissue, cartilage, and epithelium.

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