Analysis of gene expression of hESCs upon genetic modification with EBNA and S/MAR episomal vectors

Analysis of the episomal backbone's influence on gene expression. The first hypothesis tested in the present study is that the episomal EBNA vectors, which rely on the EBNA-1 oncoprotein for episomal maintenance, have a greater influence on the cells' expression profiles than S/MAR vectors. The second hypothesis tested was that when bacterial sequences are removed from the episomal vector backbone, the gene disturbance is minimal. Total RNA obtained from hESCs nucleofected with EBNA-GFP, pSMAR-GFP or nSMAR-GFP episomal vectors.