Gene Expression Changes in Definitive Endoderm in response to FGF Signaling

FGF Signaling is required for hepatic progenitor cell formation from endoderm. The mechanism of this process is poorly understood We used microarrays to identify genes directly regulated by FGF signaling in definitive endoderm that may be involved in hepatic specification. Definitive endoderm cells were treated with BMP4 and FGF2 to induce hepatic progenitor cell formation. We identified genes changed after 2 hours of BMP/FGF compared to endoderm. Using FGFR inhibitors, we identified which of these genes are regulated by FGF signaling after 2 hours. Finally we used the translation inhibitor cycloheximide to identify genes directly regulated by FGF signaling in definitive endoderm