Fig. 4: Pten-inhibitor SF1670 plays a similar role to CHIR99021 in maintaining the pluripotency of ESCs.

a Phase-contrast images of DMSO-treated and SF1670-treated WT ESCs cultured in medium without CHIR99021. Scale bars, 100 µm. b Q-PCR analysis of pluripotency marker (Esrrb, Zfp42, and Fgf4) expression in DMSO-treated and SF1670-treated ESCs cultured in medium without CHIR99021 from day 0 to day 7. Error bars indicate mean ± SD (n = 3). c Western blot analysis of WT ESCs treated with DMSO and SF1670 in medium without CHIR99021 showing the phosphorylation of Akt at T308 and S473 and the phosphorylation of Gsk3β at S9. d Nude mice were injected with DMSO-treated and SF1670-treated WT ESCs on the left and right sides, respectively. Teratomas were generated at the contralateral positions aligned at the same positions in each treatment. e Weights (g) of teratomas from DMSO-treated and SF1670-treated ESCs. f DMSO-treated and SF1670-treated ESCs were injected into immunodeficient mice and produced teratocarcinomas containing tissues representative of the three germ layers (mesoderm, ectoderm, and endoderm).