Reprogramming to pluripotency is an ancient trait of vertebrate Oct4 and Pou2 proteins

Natalia Tapia, Peter Reinhardt, Annett Duemmler, Guangming Wu, Marcos J. Araúzo-Bravo, Daniel Esch, Boris Greber, Vlad Cojocaru, Cynthia Alexander Rascon, Akira Tazaki, Kevin Kump, Randal Voss, Elly M. Tanaka () and Hans R. Schöler ()
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Natalia Tapia: Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine
Peter Reinhardt: Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine
Annett Duemmler: Technische Universität Dresden, DFG Research Center for Regenerative Therapies
Guangming Wu: Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine
Marcos J. Araúzo-Bravo: Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine
Daniel Esch: Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine
Boris Greber: Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine
Vlad Cojocaru: Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine
Cynthia Alexander Rascon: Technische Universität Dresden, DFG Research Center for Regenerative Therapies
Akira Tazaki: Technische Universität Dresden, DFG Research Center for Regenerative Therapies
Kevin Kump: Chandler Medical Center, University of Kentucky
Randal Voss: Chandler Medical Center, University of Kentucky
Elly M. Tanaka: Technische Universität Dresden, DFG Research Center for Regenerative Therapies
Hans R. Schöler: Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine

Nature Communications, 2012, vol. 3, issue 1, 1-12

Abstract: Abstract The evolutionary origins of the gene network underlying cellular pluripotency, a central theme in developmental biology, have yet to be elucidated. In mammals, Oct4 is a factor crucial in the reprogramming of differentiated cells into induced pluripotent stem cells. The Oct4 and Pou2 genes evolved from a POU class V gene ancestor, but it is unknown whether pluripotency induced by Oct4 gene activity is a feature specific to mammals or was already present in ancestral vertebrates. Here we report that different vertebrate Pou2 and Oct4 homologues can induce pluripotency in mouse and human fibroblasts and that the inability of zebrafish Pou2 to establish pluripotency is not representative of all Pou2 genes, as medaka Pou2 and axolotl Pou2 are able to reprogram somatic cells into pluripotent cells. Therefore, our results indicate that induction of pluripotency is not a feature specific to mammals, but existed in the Oct4/Pou2 common ancestral vertebrate.

Date: 2012
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms2229

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