LAUSR

In 2007, two groundbreaking studies describing the first generation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) revolutionized the world of stem cells and regenerative medicine. Researchers from the group of Shinya Yamanaka employed OCT4, SOX2, KLF4, and C-MYC (OSKM) expression from a retroviral system to generate hiPSCs from the humble fibroblast [1], while the lab of James Thomson used a lentiviral system to promote OCT4, SOX2, NANOG, and LIN28 (OSNL) expression [2]. Since those heady days, hiPSC research has progressed in leaps and bounds thanks to the introduction of novel expression systems, new reprogramming factors, and even small molecule drug replacements for specific factors. Additionally, the application of a more diverse range of donor cells and reprogramming strategies has made the process safer, cheaper, and more straightforward. However, two recent papers demonstrate that innovations in hiPSC technology do not show any signs of slowing down! In our first Featured Article this month, Doeser et al. describe how the induction of partial reprogramming in cutaneous wounds can promote healing and reduce scar formation partly through inducing lower levels of fibroblast transdifferentiation to myofibroblasts and reducing wound contraction. In a Related Article, Jiang et al. demonstrate how the generation of hiPSCs using non-integrating Sendai virus (SeV)-based reprogramming of human amniotic fluid cells derived before birth can subsequently provide for the autologous cardiac cells required to treat children with prenatally diagnosed congenital heart disorders. Headline-hitting studies in recent years suggested that neurogenesis, the production of neurons from neural stem cells (NSCs), continues in the subgranular zone (SGZ) of the hippocampal dentate gyrus and subventricular zone of the adult brain during normal aging []. These articles, and others, also built a case for the requirement of hippocampal neurogenesis, and the subsequent survival and migration of new neurons, for processes such as learning and memory, while many also hypothesized that dysregulated hippocampal neurogenesis might lead to the onset/ development of a range of neurological disorders. To this end, recent research has sought to develop NSC-focused approaches to promote or regulate adult neurogenesis as a possible means to boost lost cognitive function and treat disease. In our second Featured Article, Hui et al. report on the discovery of a novel compound that promotes adult hippocampal neurogenesis and increases the cognitive ability of adult mice, which, therefore, may represent a novel drug candidate for the treatment of hippocampus-associated cognitive dysfunction. In a Related Article, Shetty and Hattiangady establish that NSCs behave similarly following grafting into the hippocampi of young and old rats in a study with significant relevance to the development of therapies for neurodegenerative disorders in elderly human patients.