Chondrogenic Differentiation of Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
Overview
Affiliations
The generation of large quantities of genetically defined human chondrocytes remains a critical step for the development of tissue engineering strategies for cartilage regeneration and high-throughput drug screening. This protocol describes chondrogenic differentiation of human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), which can undergo genetic modification and the capacity for extensive cell expansion. The hiPSCs are differentiated in a stepwise manner in monolayer through the mesodermal lineage for 12 days using defined growth factors and small molecules. This is followed by 28 days of chondrogenic differentiation in a 3D pellet culture system using transforming growth factor beta 3 and specific compounds to inhibit off-target differentiation. The 6-week protocol results in hiPSC-derived cartilaginous tissue that can be characterized by histology, immunohistochemistry, and gene expression or enzymatically digested to isolate chondrocyte-like cells. Investigators can use this protocol for experiments including genetic engineering, in vitro disease modeling, or tissue engineering.
Future perspectives: advances in bone/cartilage organoid technology and clinical potential.
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PMID: 37969761 PMC: 10632152. DOI: 10.21769/BioProtoc.4874.
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PMID: 37963189 PMC: 10898818. DOI: 10.1080/15476278.2023.2278235.