Expected to help in the testing of new drug treatments and the development of muscle disease.

Team of Sakurai lecturer at Kyoto iPS Cell Research and success in making efficient cell muscle to move the arms and legs induced pluripotent stem cells of the human to be a variety of tissues and organs from (iPS cells) of "skeletal muscle" , I announced the U.S. online science journal Purosuwan dated 24. It succeeded for the first time in the world to be the skeletal muscle of iPS cells produced from the cells of patients with a type of muscular dystrophy muscle weakness and atrophy of muscle occurs, to produce in vitro pathology further. It is expected to help in the testing of new drug treatments and the development of muscle disease.
Team culture to work introduced into iPS cells to change gene in skeletal muscle cell fate the "MyoD1". It was in skeletal muscle cells in a high percentage of 70-90% after 9 days. Skeletal muscle cells with functional after 6 days, such as contraction by electrical stimulation could be further.
Until now, was working the MyoD1 after made ​​from iPS cells the cell population of mesoderm underlying skeletal muscle cells, but that it works before they become mesoderm and improve the fabrication efficiency was about 40% was. I want to hope that it will be put to practical use in clinical validation has begun specifically.


さまざまな組織や臓器になるヒトの人工多能性幹細胞（ｉＰＳ細胞）から腕や足を動かす筋肉「骨格筋」の細胞を効率よく作ることに京都大ｉＰＳ細胞研究所の桜井講師のチームが成功、２４日付の米オンライン科学誌プロスワンに発表した。さらに筋肉の萎縮と筋力低下が起きる筋ジストロフィーの一種の患者の細胞から作製したｉＰＳ細胞を骨格筋にし、病態を体外で作り出すことに世界で初めて成功。筋疾患の治療法開発や新薬の試験に役立つと期待される。
　チームは、細胞の運命を骨格筋に変える遺伝子「ＭｙｏＤ１」をｉＰＳ細胞に導入し働かせて培養。９日後に７０～９０％の高い割合で骨格筋細胞になった。さらに６日後には、電気刺激により収縮するなど機能性を持つ骨格筋細胞ができた。
　これまでは、骨格筋細胞のもとになる中胚葉という細胞集団をｉＰＳ細胞から作った後にＭｙｏＤ１を働かせていたが、中胚葉になる前に働かせることで、４０％程度だった作製効率を向上させた。臨床での検証が具体的に始まって実用化されていくことを期待したいですね。