A research team from Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute
identified several miRNAs that are important during
reprogramming of adult cells into induced stem pluripotent cells
(iPSCs). They say that using these miRNAs, they were able to
make the transition from skin cells to iPSCs more efficient.
“Our study not only presents new mechanistic insights about the
role of noncoding RNAs during somatic cell reprogramming, but
also provides proof of principle using microRNAs as great
enhancers for iPS cell generation,” remarks Zhonghan Li,
graduate student and first author of the study. The paper,
titled “Small RNA-mediated regulation of iPS cell generation,”
appears February 1 in The EMBO Journal. Tariq Rana, Ph.D.,
director of the RNA biology program at Sanford-Burnham and
senior author of the paper, explains, “We identified several
molecular barriers early in the reprogramming process and
figured out how to remove them using miRNA." The team observed
that three groups of miRNAs, including two known individua