Conditioned media from SDEC supports human embryonic stem cell proliferation on type I collagen

Conditioned media from a human embryonic germ cell-derived line called SDEC was found to be supportive of human embryonic stem cell growth in the absence of feeder layers on a simple type I collagen matrix. We performed gene expression studies comparing this line to non-supportive cell lines (WI-38 and Detroit 551) to try to identify gene targets responsible for this phenomenon. We used Affymetrix microarrays to identify genes that are differentially regulated in SDEC vs. non-supportive cell lines. The goal is to determine which genes maybe be contributing to human embryonic stem cell growth in the absence of a mouse fibroblast feeder layer. Total RNA samples were extracted from SDEC, WI-38, and Detroit 551 (D551) cell lines to compare gene expressions. Three biological replicates of each were analyzed via micorarray. Gene targets were identified by looking for highly differentially regulated genes in SDEC compared to the non-supportive lines. We concentrated on secreted proteins (which could potentially be secreted into the conditioned media) which we identified by functional annotations and literature research.