Mesenchymal stem cells: Molecular characteristics and clinical applications

Figure 1 Multipotential differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are pluripotent progenitor cells with the capacity to differentiate into lineages of all three germ layers. The lineage-specific differentiation is a multi-stage and well-coordinated process controlled by key regulators. Runx2 and Osterix are important master regulators for osteogenic differentiation while peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ and CCAAT/enhancer binding protein β are important factors promoting adipogenesis. SRY-box 9 is the main regulator of chondrogenic regulation while MyoD plays a key role in myogenic differentiation. MSCs also have the ability, although to much lesser extent, to differentiate into other lineages, such as neuronal and cardiomyogenic cells (lighter arrows).