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This year marks the tenth anniversary of the generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) by transcription factor-mediated somatic cell reprogramming. Takahashi and Yamanaka portray the path towards this ground-breaking discovery and discuss how, since then, research has focused on understanding the mechanisms underlying iPSC generation and on translating such advances to the clinic. The past 10 years have seen great advances in our ability to manipulate cell fate, including the induction of pluripotency in vitro to generate induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). This process proved to be remarkably simple from a technical perspective, only needing the host cell and a defined cocktail of transcription factors, with four factors — octamer-binding protein 3/4 (OCT3/4), SOX2, Krüppel-like factor 4 (KLF4) and MYC (collectively referred to as OSKM) — initially used. The mechanisms underlying transcription factor-mediated reprogramming are still poorly understood; however, several mechanistic insights have recently been obtained. Recent years have also brought significant progress in increasing the efficiency of this technique, making it more amenable to applications in the fields of regenerative medicine, disease modelling and drug discovery.

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have been induced into human primordial germ cell–like cells (hPGCLCs) in vitro, the first step toward human in vitro gametogenesis. Yamashiro et al. went a step closer to generating mature gametes by culturing hPSCs with mouse embryonic ovarian somatic cells in xenogeneic reconstituted ovaries (see the Perspective by Gill and Peters). Over a period of 4 months, hPGCLCs underwent hallmark epigenetic reprogramming and differentiated progressively into cells closely resembling human oogonia, an immediate embryonic precursor for human oocytes. This study creates opportunities for human germ cell research and provides a foundation for human in vitro gametogenesis. Science , this issue p. 356 ; see also p. 291 Human primordial germ cell–like cells differentiate into oogonia in xenogeneic reconstituted ovaries in vitro. Human in vitro gametogenesis may transform reproductive medicine. Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have been induced into primordial germ cell–like cells (hPGCLCs); however, further differentiation to a mature germ cell has not been achieved. Here, we show that hPGCLCs differentiate progressively into oogonia-like cells during a long-term in vitro culture (approximately 4 months) in xenogeneic reconstituted ovaries with mouse embryonic ovarian somatic cells. The hPGCLC-derived oogonia display hallmarks of epigenetic reprogramming—genome-wide DNA demethylation, imprint erasure, and extinguishment of aberrant DNA methylation in hPSCs—and acquire an immediate precursory state for meiotic recombination. Furthermore, the inactive X chromosome shows a progressive demethylation and reactivation, albeit partially. These findings establish the germline competence of hPSCs and provide a critical step toward human in vitro gametogenesis.

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) offer an unprecedented opportunity to model diverse cell types and tissues. To enable systematic exploration of the programming landscape mediated by transcription factors (TFs), we present the Human TFome, a comprehensive library containing 1,564 TF genes and 1,732 TF splice isoforms. By screening the library in three hPSC lines, we discovered 290 TFs, including 241 that were previously unreported, that induce differentiation in 4 days without alteration of external soluble or biomechanical cues. We used four of the hits to program hPSCs into neurons, fibroblasts, oligodendrocytes and vascular endothelial-like cells that have molecular and functional similarity to primary cells. Our cell-autonomous approach enabled parallel programming of hPSCs into multiple cell types simultaneously. We also demonstrated orthogonal programming by including oligodendrocyte-inducible hPSCs with unmodified hPSCs to generate cerebral organoids, which expedited in situ myelination. Large-scale combinatorial screening of the Human TFome will complement other strategies for cell engineering based on developmental biology and computational systems biology. A library of human transcription factor genes is screened for differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells.

Upon stimulation, small numbers of naive CD8+ T cells proliferate and differentiate into a variety of memory and effector cell types. CD8+ T cells can persist for years and kill tumour cells and virally infected cells. The functional and phenotypic changes that occur during CD8+ T cell differentiation are well characterized, but the epigenetic states that underlie these changes are incompletely understood. Here, we review the epigenetic processes that direct CD8+ T cell differentiation and function. We focus on epigenetic modification of DNA and associated histones at genes and their regulatory elements. We also describe structural changes in chromatin organization that affect gene expression. Finally, we examine the translational potential of epigenetic interventions to improve CD8+ T cell function in individuals with chronic infections and cancer.

Huntington’s disease (HD) is caused by Huntingtin (Htt) gene mutation resulting in the loss of striatal GABAergic neurons and motor functional deficits. We report here an in vivo cell conversion technology to reprogram striatal astrocytes into GABAergic neurons in both R6/2 and YAC128 HD mouse models through AAV-mediated ectopic expression of NeuroD1 and Dlx2 transcription factors. We found that the astrocyte-to-neuron (AtN) conversion rate reached 80% in the striatum and >50% of the converted neurons were DARPP32 + medium spiny neurons. The striatal astrocyte-converted neurons showed action potentials and synaptic events, and projected their axons to the targeted globus pallidus and substantia nigra in a time-dependent manner. Behavioral analyses found that NeuroD1 and Dlx2-treated R6/2 mice showed a significant extension of life span and improvement of motor functions. This study demonstrates that in vivo AtN conversion may be a disease-modifying gene therapy to treat HD and other neurodegenerative disorders. In vivo reprogramming of reactive glia using transfection of a single transcription factor has been described before by these authors and applied to models of neurodegeneration. Here the authors use this procedure in the R6/2 mouse model of Huntington’s disease, targeting astrocytes in the striatum, converting them to GABAergic neurons.

CRISPR/Cas mediated genome editing has been successfully demonstrated in mammalian cells and further applications for generating mutant mice were reported by injecting humanized Cas9 ( hCas ) mRNA and single guide RNA into fertilized eggs. Here we inject the circular plasmids expressing hCas9 and sgRNA into mouse zygotes and obtained mutant mice within a month. When we targeted the Cetn1 locus, 58.8% (10/17) of the pups carried the mutations and six of them were homozygously mutated. Co-injection of the plasmids targeting different loci resulted in the successful removal of the flanked region in two out of three mutant pups. The efficient mutagenesis was also observed at the Prm1 locus. Among the 46 offspring carrying CRISPR/Cas plasmid mediated mutations, only two of them carried the hCas9 transgene. The pronuclear injection of circular plasmid expressing hCas9/sgRNA complex is a rapid, simple and reproducible method for targeted mutagenesis.

Direct reprogramming of fibroblasts into cardiomyocytes by forced expression of cardiomyogenic factors, GMT (GATA4, Mef2C, Tbx5) or GHMT (GATA4, Hand2, Mef2C, Tbx5), has recently been demonstrated, suggesting a novel therapeutic strategy for cardiac repair. However, current approaches are inefficient. Here we demonstrate that pro-fibrotic signalling potently antagonizes cardiac reprogramming. Remarkably, inhibition of pro-fibrotic signalling using small molecules that target the transforming growth factor-β or Rho-associated kinase pathways converts embryonic fibroblasts into functional cardiomyocyte-like cells, with the efficiency up to 60%. Conversely, overactivation of these pro-fibrotic signalling networks attenuates cardiac reprogramming. Furthermore, inhibition of pro-fibrotic signalling dramatically enhances the kinetics of cardiac reprogramming, with spontaneously contracting cardiomyocytes emerging in less than 2 weeks, as opposed to 4 weeks with GHMT alone. These findings provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying cardiac conversion of fibroblasts and would enhance efforts to generate cardiomyocytes for clinical applications. Direct reprogramming of cardiac fibroblasts into cardiomyocytes is an attractive strategy for heart regeneration, but it is hampered by the low efficiency of the process. Here the authors show that mouse fibroblasts can be reprogrammed with high efficiency into functional cardiomyocytes when pro-fibrotic signaling is inhibited.

Genetic circuits that are reliable, robust, and scalable are built without the need for optimization using a recombinase-based system. Engineered genetic circuits for mammalian cells often require extensive fine-tuning to perform as intended. We present a robust, general, scalable system, called 'Boolean logic and arithmetic through DNA excision' (BLADE), to engineer genetic circuits with multiple inputs and outputs in mammalian cells with minimal optimization. The reliability of BLADE arises from its reliance on recombinases under the control of a single promoter, which integrates circuit signals on a single transcriptional layer. We used BLADE to build 113 circuits in human embryonic kidney and Jurkat T cells and devised a quantitative, vector-proximity metric to evaluate their performance. Of 113 circuits analyzed, 109 functioned (96.5%) as intended without optimization. The circuits, which are available through Addgene, include a 3-input, two-output full adder; a 6-input, one-output Boolean logic look-up table; circuits with small-molecule-inducible control; and circuits that incorporate CRISPR–Cas9 to regulate endogenous genes. BLADE enables execution of sophisticated cellular computation in mammalian cells, with applications in cell and tissue engineering.

Factors limiting the adoption of iPSC technology include the cost of developing lines and the time period that it takes to characterize and bank them, particularly when integration free, feeder free and Xeno-free components are used. In this manuscript we describe our optimization procedure that enables a single technician to make 20–40 lines at a time in a 24–96 well format in a reliable and reproducible fashion. Improvements spanned the entire workflow and included using RNA virus, reducing cytotoxicity of reagents, developing improved transfection and freezing efficiencies, modifying the manual colony picking steps, enhancing passaging efficiency and developing early criteria of success. These modifications allowed us to make more than two hundred well-characterized lines per year.

In vivo reprogramming of astrocytes to dopamine neurons improves motor behavior in a mouse model of Parkinson's disease. Cell replacement therapies for neurodegenerative disease have focused on transplantation of the cell types affected by the pathological process. Here we describe an alternative strategy for Parkinson's disease in which dopamine neurons are generated by direct conversion of astrocytes. Using three transcription factors, NEUROD1, ASCL1 and LMX1A, and the microRNA miR218, collectively designated NeAL218, we reprogram human astrocytes in vitro , and mouse astrocytes in vivo , into induced dopamine neurons (iDANs). Reprogramming efficiency in vitro is improved by small molecules that promote chromatin remodeling and activate the TGFβ, Shh and Wnt signaling pathways. The reprogramming efficiency of human astrocytes reaches up to 16%, resulting in iDANs with appropriate midbrain markers and excitability. In a mouse model of Parkinson's disease, NeAL218 alone reprograms adult striatal astrocytes into iDANs that are excitable and correct some aspects of motor behavior in vivo , including gait impairments. With further optimization, this approach may enable clinical therapies for Parkinson's disease by delivery of genes rather than cells.