Beyond pluripotency: Yamanaka factors drive brain growth and regeneration

Sunwoo Choi; Mingzi Zhang; Ruslan Rust

doi:10.1016/j.molmed.2024.11.013

Beyond pluripotency: Yamanaka factors drive brain growth and regeneration

Trends Mol Med. 2024 Dec 11:S1471-4914(24)00328-9. doi: 10.1016/j.molmed.2024.11.013. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Sunwoo Choi¹, Mingzi Zhang¹, Ruslan Rust²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Physiology and Neuroscience, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA; Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA.
² Department of Physiology and Neuroscience, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA; Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA. Electronic address: rrust@usc.edu.

PMID: 39668101
DOI: 10.1016/j.molmed.2024.11.013

Abstract

The Yamanaka factors (YFs), a set of four transcription factors, are widely studied for their ability to dedifferentiate somatic cells into a pluripotent state. In a recent study, Shen and colleagues show that transient expression of YFs in the mouse brain expands the developing cortex and prevents cognitive decline in an Alzheimer's disease (AD) model.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; YF; aging; neurodegeneration; pluripotent stem cells; reprogramming.