This blog is devoted to BIOL 6988, a graduate level seminar in the biological sciences at Youngstown State University. While targeted towards graduate students, BIOL 6988 actively incorporates undergraduate participants in their scholastic endeavors in the biological sciences. This blog is intended as a educational tool not just for YSU students and faculty, but for anyone who wishes to contribute to an active-learning environment.
Ok folks, the first of this semesters presentations begins with a really terrific guy, our own G-Dub! Please make him welcome and Jessica will start the discussion below.
Last Friday, Dr. Walker kicked off seminar with an interesting presentation regarding the career path of a myocyte and how stem cells give rise to muscle. I was surprised to learn that N2B is a cardiac specific protein associated with Titin.
Dr. Walker is manipulating the cellular niché through use of different serums. So far, he's looked at Bovine serum, Horse serum and PC-1. PC-1 contains a complete HEPES buffering system with known amounts of insulin, transferrin, fatty acids, and proprietary proteins. Do you think these aspects contribute to its success as a medium for myogenesis? If not, what do you think contributes to the difference in myogenesis with PC-1 versus Bovine or Horse Serum?
Stem cells have always intrigued me and Dr. Walker's talk was real interesting. I was also surprised when he mentioned N2B, a cardiac-specific element, was shown being expressed in his myocyte cultures. If I'm remembering the presentation correctly, the PC1 led to differentiation different from that seen with the FCS. I'm sure the factors in PC-1 has an effect on cell fate, but maybe not in the same direction to myocytes like the FCS did. C2C12 cells better differentiate in low-serum or serum-free media. Maybe insulin and other factors in the PC-1 is better for promoting proliferation rather than differentiation. So therefore in the absence of extracellular signals, the stem cell is equip to differentiate into myocytes.
I concur with Nate. The introduction of serum is better suited for cell growth rather than the differentiation that Dr. Walker wanted to see.
I believe that it had to do more with type of serum and its concentration. With respect to myogenesis, there are checkpoints which may require the presence/absence of certain proteins. Serum stimulation, usually up regulates different signaling pathways. Perhaps this was why serum starvation of C2C12 cells led to proper differentiation.
I enjoyed Dr. Walker's talk and thought his work was very interesting. Muscle development and movement are an interest of mine so this talk was very informative.
I agree with Frank that the type of serum and its concentration had more to do with the results Dr. Walker was seeing. The C2C12 cells would require a lower concentration/amount to produce the differentiation of the myoblasts. The lack of serum quantity (low-serum or serum-free) is what these cells require for differentiation and since the PC-1 is serum-free these results appear to make sense. I think the components of PC-1 aid in contributing to the differentiation that was different from the FCS.
Well, I unfortunately missed Dr. Walker's talk due to attending a potential PhD candidate campus visit. Although, I missed it, I still want to participate in this weeks blog discussion, so I am going to base my response off of the supplemental documents provided and the above responses to his seminar talk.
It seems that mostly everyone is in consensus that the sera used was excellent for promoting cell growth, but not conducive to promoting the appropriate stem cell differentiation. It seems logical, as alluded to above this may be due to the sera not containing the appropriate signalling proteins/peptides at the time essential to the differentiation process. Trying to replicate the processes of the human body in the laboratory is a complex task to complete, and finding the right environmental conditions is instrumental to the process.
I do believe the use of PC-1 with the additional insulin, transferrin, fatty acids, and proprietary proteins provided an advantage to cell growth over Bovine serum or Horse serum. Perhaps, a novel serum created in the laboratory with additional growth specific factors know to promote cell differentiation would be more conducive.
P.S. I apologize in advance for my absence to this week's presenter Frank. I have another interview this Friday.
Dr. Walker's presentation was interesting and informative. It touched on an aspect very vital in organisms maintenance of body posture and position; the muscle cell.
The C2C12 cells show greater differentiation in serum-free media than in serum-containing media. This confirms the results Dr. Walker was getting in the PC-1 because it was a serum free medium, thus the myocyte differentiation although different from the FCS. I agree with Frank the type of serum and its concentration really do affect myogenesis. Perhaps also the PC-1 components contributed to myocyte differentiation.
I also really enjoyed Dr. Walker's presentation on his current research on stem cells and how he hopes to look into muscles and aging in the future. Serums are supplements containing numerous growth factors,therefore would help the C2C12 cells to proliferate but not differentiate. This could be as a result of the presence of too much growth factors which inhibit their differentiating abilities like Nathan and Frank said. The PC-1 medium being serum free, also has components for cell growth but with minimum protein content (growth factor content) which I assume is the right amount needed for the differentiation of the C2C12 cells into myocytes.
I found Dr. Walker's presentation interesting as I have always found stem cells to be intriguing.
I agree with Frank as well, that the serum type and concentration had more to do the results. Since PC-1 is a serum free medium that is intended for the culture of primary cells and C2C12 require a lower concentration to initiate differentiation, the results produced are what would be expected for PC-1 instead of FCS. Therefore, I do believe that the components of PC-1 contribute to the differentiation that resulted.
Hello all! Unfortunately, I was not at seminar this past Friday, but I would also like to chime in. I would have to agree with pretty much everyone here that the differences in medium had a great impact on the cell's pathway to either proliferate or differentiate. From what I have gathered and read online, stem cells such as myoblasts can be sensitive to many microenvironmental stimuli that can determine the cell's fate. Dr. Walker observed that C2C12 cells in the presence of little to no serum differentiated, while cells grown with FCS proliferated. I agree with Thywill in that too much growth factor could have possibly inhibited differentiation, and may have caused different signaling pathways to have occurred instead. This would make sense that PC-1, with minimum growth factors, would allow the cells to differentiate.
Last Friday, Dr. Walker kicked off seminar with an interesting presentation regarding the career path of a myocyte and how stem cells give rise to muscle. I was surprised to learn that N2B is a cardiac specific protein associated with Titin.
ReplyDeleteDr. Walker is manipulating the cellular niché through use of different serums. So far, he's looked at Bovine serum, Horse serum and PC-1. PC-1 contains a complete HEPES buffering system with known amounts of insulin, transferrin, fatty acids, and proprietary proteins. Do you think these aspects contribute to its success as a medium for myogenesis? If not, what do you think contributes to the difference in myogenesis with PC-1 versus Bovine or Horse Serum?
Stem cells have always intrigued me and Dr. Walker's talk was real interesting. I was also surprised when he mentioned N2B, a cardiac-specific element, was shown being expressed in his myocyte cultures.
ReplyDeleteIf I'm remembering the presentation correctly, the PC1 led to differentiation different from that seen with the FCS. I'm sure the factors in PC-1 has an effect on cell fate, but maybe not in the same direction to myocytes like the FCS did. C2C12 cells better differentiate in low-serum or serum-free media. Maybe insulin and other factors in the PC-1 is better for promoting proliferation rather than differentiation. So therefore in the absence of extracellular signals, the stem cell is equip to differentiate into myocytes.
I concur with Nate. The introduction of serum is better suited for cell growth rather than the differentiation that Dr. Walker wanted to see.
ReplyDeleteI believe that it had to do more with type of serum and its concentration. With respect to myogenesis, there are checkpoints which may require the presence/absence of certain proteins. Serum stimulation, usually up regulates different signaling pathways. Perhaps this was why serum starvation of C2C12 cells led to proper differentiation.
I enjoyed Dr. Walker's talk and thought his work was very interesting. Muscle development and movement are an interest of mine so this talk was very informative.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Frank that the type of serum and its concentration had more to do with the results Dr. Walker was seeing. The C2C12 cells would require a lower concentration/amount to produce the differentiation of the myoblasts. The lack of serum quantity (low-serum or serum-free) is what these cells require for differentiation and since the PC-1 is serum-free these results appear to make sense. I think the components of PC-1 aid in contributing to the differentiation that was different from the FCS.
Hi everyone,
ReplyDeleteWell, I unfortunately missed Dr. Walker's talk due to attending a potential PhD candidate campus visit. Although, I missed it, I still want to participate in this weeks blog discussion, so I am going to base my response off of the supplemental documents provided and the above responses to his seminar talk.
It seems that mostly everyone is in consensus that the sera used was excellent for promoting cell growth, but not conducive to promoting the appropriate stem cell differentiation. It seems logical, as alluded to above this may be due to the sera not containing the appropriate signalling proteins/peptides at the time essential to the differentiation process. Trying to replicate the processes of the human body in the laboratory is a complex task to complete, and finding the right environmental conditions is instrumental to the process.
I do believe the use of PC-1 with the additional insulin, transferrin, fatty acids, and proprietary proteins provided an advantage to cell growth over Bovine serum or Horse serum. Perhaps, a novel serum created in the laboratory with additional growth specific factors know to promote cell differentiation would be more conducive.
P.S. I apologize in advance for my absence to this week's presenter Frank. I have another interview this Friday.
Dr. Walker's presentation was interesting and informative. It touched on an aspect very vital in organisms maintenance of body posture and position; the muscle cell.
ReplyDeleteThe C2C12 cells show greater differentiation in serum-free media than in serum-containing media. This confirms the results Dr. Walker was getting in the PC-1 because it was a serum free medium, thus the myocyte differentiation although different from the FCS. I agree with Frank the type of serum and its concentration really do affect myogenesis. Perhaps also the PC-1 components contributed to myocyte differentiation.
I also really enjoyed Dr. Walker's presentation on his current research on stem cells and how he hopes to look into muscles and aging in the future.
ReplyDeleteSerums are supplements containing numerous growth factors,therefore would help the C2C12 cells to proliferate but not differentiate. This could be as a result of the presence of too much growth factors which inhibit their differentiating abilities like Nathan and Frank said. The PC-1 medium being serum free, also has components for cell growth but with minimum protein content (growth factor content) which I assume is the right amount needed for the differentiation of the C2C12 cells into myocytes.
I found Dr. Walker's presentation interesting as I have always found stem cells to be intriguing.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Frank as well, that the serum type and concentration had more to do the results. Since PC-1 is a serum free medium that is intended for the culture of primary cells and C2C12 require a lower concentration to initiate differentiation, the results produced are what would be expected for PC-1 instead of FCS. Therefore, I do believe that the components of PC-1 contribute to the differentiation that resulted.
Hello all! Unfortunately, I was not at seminar this past Friday, but I would also like to chime in. I would have to agree with pretty much everyone here that the differences in medium had a great impact on the cell's pathway to either proliferate or differentiate. From what I have gathered and read online, stem cells such as myoblasts can be sensitive to many microenvironmental stimuli that can determine the cell's fate. Dr. Walker observed that C2C12 cells in the presence of little to no serum differentiated, while cells grown with FCS proliferated. I agree with Thywill in that too much growth factor could have possibly inhibited differentiation, and may have caused different signaling pathways to have occurred instead. This would make sense that PC-1, with minimum growth factors, would allow the cells to differentiate.
ReplyDelete