ß-catenin Plays a Dual Role in the Generation and Maintenance of Immortalized Hematopoietic Stem Cells. Mus musculus

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are characterized by their ability to give rise to all mature blood lineages and to renew themselves. Despite their potential for the therapeutic use in cell replacement therapy, the cell fate decisions of HSCs controlled by extrinsic and intrinsic mechanisms remain poorly understood. In summary, our results provide a number of novel and important observations illustrating and enlightening the importance of ß-catenin in hematopoiesis. Specifically, we show that ß-catenin plays an essential role in the immortalization of HSCs. Keywords: hematopoietic stem cells , immortalization, ß-catenin, genetic modification, time course Overall design: One objective of our study was to understand the molecular targets of ß-catenin in controlling the immortalization of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). Using a microarray screening approach, we had identified candidate genes that might potentially regulate ß-catenin mediated immortalization of HSCs. A special focus was given to transcription factors (TFs), since they play myriad functions in basic cellular processes. The strategy of our experimental design utilized a combination of a pair wise comparison and time course microarray experiments that include the expression profiles of TFs in 4 different samples: