Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE
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In general, human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs)(1) can be cultured under variable conditions. However, it is not easy to establish an effective system for culturing these cells. Since the culture conditions can influence gene expression that confers pluripotency in hESCs and hiPSCs, the optimization and standardization of the culture method is crucial. The establishment of hESC lines was first described by using MEFs as feeder cells and fetal bovine serum (FBS)-containing culture medium(2). ⋯ Exogenous FGF2 is crucial for maintaining self-renewal of hESCs and hiPSCs, and has been identified as a key factor regulating the expression of Tgfβ1, Activin A and Gremlin (a BMP antagonist) in feeder cells. Activin A has been shown to induce the expression of OCT4, SOX2, and NANOG in hESCs(15-16). For long-term culture, hESCs and hiPSCs can be grown on mitotically inactivated MEFs or under feeder-free conditions in MEF-CM (MEF-Conditioned Medium) on Matrigel-coated plates to maintain their undifferentiated state. Success of both culture conditions fully depends on the quality of the feeder cells, since they directly affect the growth of hESCs. Here, we present an optimized method for the isolation and culture of mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs), preparation of conditioned medium (CM) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to assess the levels of Activin A within the media.