Transient MicroRNA Expression Enhances Myogenic Potential of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

Abstract

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are known regulators of various cellular processes, including pluripotency and differentiation of embryonic stem cells (ESCs). We analyzed differentiation of two ESC lines—D3 and B8, and observed significant differences in the expression of miRNAs and genes involved in pluripotency and differentiation. We also examined if transient miRNA overexpression could serve as a sufficient impulse modulating differentiation of mouse ESCs. ESCs were transfected with miRNA Mimics and differentiated in embryoid bodies and embryoid body outgrowths. miRNAs involved in differentiation of mesodermal lineages, such as miR145 and miR181, as well as miRNAs regulating myogenesis (MyomiRs)—miR1..