The present invention refers to a method for inducing pluripotent stem cells starting from somatic cells isolated from healthy and/or diseased individuals. The diseased individual is preferably affected by a genetic disease such as type A hemophilia, and the somatic cells from the diseased individual are genetically corrected for the mutation causing the disease preferably after being reprogrammed by the method of the present invention. A further aspect of the present invention refers to a method for differentiating induced pluripotent stem cells or embryonic stem cell-like into endothelial cells. Moreover, the present invention refers to the use of these cells as a medicament for treating a disease, in particular, a genetic disease such as type A hemophilia.

The current disclosure provides methods for reprogramming mammalian somatic cells by regulating the expression of endogenous cellular genes. Cellular reprogramming of somatic cells can be induced by activating the transcription of embryonic stem cell-associated genes (e.g., oct3/4) and suppressing the transcription of somatic cell-specific and/or cell death-associated genes. The endogenous transcription machinery can be modulated using synthetic transcription factors (activators and suppressors), to allow for faster, and more efficient nuclear reprogramming under conditions amenable for clinical and commercial applications. The current disclosure further provides cells obtained from such methods, along with therapeutic methods for using such cells for the treatment of diseases amendable to stem cell therapy, as well as kits for such uses.

The invention provides compositions and methods of use in reprogramming somatic cells. Compositions and methods of the invention are of use, e.g., for generating or modulating (e.g., enhancing) generation of induced pluripotent stem cells by reprogramming somatic cells. The reprogrammed somatic cells are useful for a number of purposes, including treating or preventing a medical condition in an individual. The invention further provides methods for identifying an agent that reprograms somatic cells to a pluripotent state and/or enhances the speed and/or efficiency of reprogramming. Certain of the compositions and methods relate to modulating the Wnt pathway.

A method of producing an induced pluripotent stem cell, comprising the step of introducing at least one kind of non-viral expression vector incorporating at least one gene that encodes a reprogramming factor into a somatic cell. In some embodiments, the gene that encodes a reprogramming factor is one or more kind of genes selected from the group consisting of an Oct family gene, a Klf family gene, a Sox family gene, a Myc family gene, a Lin family gene, and the Nanog gene.

The purpose of the present invention is to develop a virus vector, the activity of which is rendered controllable. A virus protein gene derived from an RNA virus is provided in which a gene encoding an optical switch protein is inserted into a foreign gene introducible region of the virus protein so as to enable expression of the gene. By means of this virus vector, it is possible to control, with irradiation of light, enzyme activity of the virus protein and virus vector activity based thereon.

The present invention relates in part to methods for producing tissue-specific cells from patient samples, and to tissue-specific cells produced using these methods. Methods for reprogramming cells using RNA are disclosed. Therapeutics comprising cells produced using these methods are also disclosed.

The present disclosure relates to methods and compositions for reprogramming cells to a pluripotent state. In particular, it relates to an integration- and feeder cell-free method for reprogramming primary human fibroblast cells to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs).

The present disclosure relates to methods and compositions for reprogramming cells to a pluripotent state. In particular, it relates to an integration- and feeder cell-free method for reprogramming primary human fibroblast cells to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs).

The present invention relates to a composition for enhancing reprogramming efficiency from somatic cells to induced pluripotent stem cells, comprising an mTOR activator, and a method for enhancing reprogramming efficiency by using same. In the method, reprogramming factors including OCT4, SOX2, c-Myc, and KLF4 are transduced into somatic cells, followed by treatment with an mTOR activator, thereby remarkably increasing reprogramming efficiency into induced pluripotent stem cells. Therefore, the composition and method can be used for effectively inducing the reprograming of somatic cells into induced pluripotent stem cells.

A method of obtaining a pancreatic multipotent or unipotent cell including providing a cell of a first type which is not a pancreatic multipotent or unipotent cell; contacting the cell of a first type with an agent capable of remodeling the chromatin and/or DNA of the cell; transiently increasing expression of at least one pancreatic multipotent or unipotent gene regulator in the cell of a first type, to a level at which the at least one pancreatic multipotent or unipotent gene regulator is capable of driving transformation of the cell of a first type into the pancreatic multipotent or unipotent cell; and placing or maintaining the cell in a pancreatic cell culture medium and maintaining intracellular levels of the at least one pancreatic multipotent or unipotent gene regulator for a sufficient period of time to allow a pancreatic multipotent or unipotent cell to be obtained.