A Place to Call Home: Bioengineering Pluripotential Stem Cell Cultures

Pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) have the power to revolutionize the future of cell-based therapies and regenerative medicine. However, stem/progenitor cell use in the clinical arsenal has been hampered by discrepancies resulting from stem cell engineering and expansion, as well as in their (mass) differentiation in culture. Moreover, the manner in which external conditions affect PSC and induced-pluripotent stem cell lineage establishment as well as maturation remains controversial. In this review, we examine novel methods of cell engineering and the role of reprogramming transcription factors in PSC development. In addition, we explore the effect of external environmental signals on PSC cultivation and differentiation by elucidating key components of the primordial stem cell microenvironment, the blastocyst. Furthermore, we assess the effects of hypoxic conditions on DNA editing, gene expression, and protein function in PSC self-renewal and growth. Finally, we speculate on the principal use of gap junction subunit expression as relevant biomarkers of PSC fate. Improving bioreactor design and pertinent cell biomarker classification could vastly enhance manufactured stem cell yield and quality, thereby increasing the potency and safety of therapeutic cells to be used in regenerative medicine.