Creating and Characterizing Human Stem Cell-Derived Pharyngeal Endoderm

The foregut endoderm contributes to several organs including the thyroid, lungs, liver, and pancreas. Human pharyngeal foregut endoderm is linked to human syndromes involving pharynx development and the production of tissues such as thymus, parathyroid, and thyroid. Approaches to study it has been impeded by the scarcity of tissue access and cellular models.  

An efficient method to generate human pharyngeal endoderm from stem cells was published in Developmental Cell (September 25, 2023) by the laboratories of René Maehr, PhD and Michael Brehm, PhD. It allows scientists to investigate the role of particular genes, and how they affect the pharyngeal endoderm and its development.

The Maehr lab is focused on the thymus, an organ responsible for the development of immune cells called T lymphocytes, which attack and destroy insulin-secreting pancreatic beta cells in people with type 1 diabetes. Thymus dysfunction has been linked to autoimmunity and immune deficiencies. Creating a human thymus would allow them to study the potential of patient-specific pluripotent stem cells, and eventually treatment strategies for human immune syndromes.

This protocol has made it possible to conduct in vitro studies using the Brehm lab’s novel humanized mouse models to investigate the phases that occur as embryonic stem cells develop into pharyngeal endoderm.

More Diabetes Center of Excellence News