Genes that integrate multiple adipogenic signaling pathways in human mesenchymal stem cells

Adipogenesis is a well-characterized cell differentiation process. A large body of evidence has revealed the core transcription factors and signaling pathways that govern adipogenesis, but cross-talks between these cellular signals and its functional consequences have not been thoroughly investigated. We, therefore, sought to identify genes that are regulated by multiple signaling pathways during adipogenesis of human mesenchymal stem cells. Focusing on the early stage of adipogenesis, microarray analysis and quantitative RT-PCR identified 12 genes whose transcription levels were dramatically affected by the complete adipogenic induction cocktail but not by the cocktail's individual components. Expression kinetics of these genes indicate diverse mechanisms of transcriptional regulation during adipogenesis. Functional relationships between these genes and adipogenic differentiation were frequently unknown. This study thus provided novel adipogenic gene candidates that likely mediate communications among multiple signaling pathways within human mesenchymal stem cells. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.