Date of Award
2008
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science
Program
Biochemistry
Supervisor
Dr. Victor Han
Second Advisor
Dr. Thomas Drysdale
Third Advisor
Dr. Richard Rozmahel
Abstract
The main objective of this thesis was to identify the role(s) of IGF-I and IGF-II on the fate of mouse trophoblast stem cells (TS cells) and their role in contributing to the stem cell fate, when grown in the absence of additional growth factors. By analyzing the expression of self-renewal and trophoblast-specific transcription factors, the addition of IGF-I and IGF-II restored nuclear OCT4 and CDX2 expression, with IGF- II inducing a longer effect, while the expression of SOX2 was not restored. IGF-I was found to induce the differentiation of TS cells based on expression and quantitative analysis of PL-1 expression. Annexin-V and TUNEL staining demonstrated that IGF-II protects TS cells from cell death. The addition of FGF-4 to the system did not have an additive effect of protection and induced further negative effect when combined with IGFs. These studies demonstrate that IGF-I and IGF-II, have different biological effects on the fate of mouse TS cells, likely through different signal transduction pathways.
Recommended Citation
Porteous, Robert Stanley, "DIFFERENTIAL EFFECTS OF IGF-I AND IGF-II ON THE FATE OF MOUSE TROPHOBLAST STEM CELLS" (2008). Digitized Theses. 4137.
https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/digitizedtheses/4137