http://insciences.org/article.php?article_id=8329

Scientists from the Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS), a biomedical research institute of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), have discovered a genetic molecule, called Tbx3, which greatly improves the quality of stem cells that have been reprogrammed from differentiated cells (stem cells reprogrammed from differentiated cells are known as induced pluripotent stem cells or iPS cells). The study was published on 7 February 2010 in the prestigious journal Nature.

Using a series of genomic experiments that examines the process of reprogramming, the scientists discovered that Tbx3 significantly improved the quality of the iPS cells created. Interestingly, this gene is also crucial for many aspects of early developmental processes in mammals. Through the addition of Tbx3 to the existing reprogramming cocktail, the scientists successfully produced better quality iPS cells that were much more efficient in recapitulating the entire developmental process. The capability of iPS cells for germ-line transmission represents one of the most stringent tests of their ESC-like quality. This test requires that iPS cells contribute to the formation of germ cells which are responsible for propagating the next generation of offspring