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Cells
Special Issues
The Potential of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
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The Potential of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

A Special Issue of Cells (ISSN 2073-4409) belonging to the section "Stem Cells".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026 | Viewed by 10735

Editor

Dr. Yun Chang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Biomedical Engineering, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong
Interests: chimeric antigen receptor engineering immune cells; immunotherapy; pluripotent stem cell engineering; bio-nanotechnology engineering
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) have emerged as a transformative tool in regenerative medicine and disease modeling due to their unique ability to differentiate into any cell type in the human body. Over the past decade, significant advancements have been made in PSC engineering, including methods to efficiently reprogram somatic cells into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), genome editing techniques to precisely modify PSCs, and the development of novel culture systems to maintain PSC pluripotency and differentiation potential. As a guest editor for this journal, I am excited to present a collection of articles highlighting the latest breakthroughs and trends in PSC engineering. These articles cover a wide range of topics, including the use of CRISPR/Cas9 technology to correct genetic mutations in iPSCs for disease modeling and cell therapy, the application of bioengineering principles to enhance PSC differentiation into specific cell lineages, and the exploration of 3D organoid models derived from PSCs for drug screening and personalized medicine. Through this Special Issue, we aim to provide readers with a comprehensive overview of the current state-of-the-art in PSC engineering and its potential implications for advancing biomedical research and clinical applications. We hope that these articles will inspire further research and collaboration in this rapidly evolving field.

Dr. Yun Chang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Cells is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • pluripotent stem cells
  • reprogramming
  • engineering
  • regenerative medicine
  • differentiation
  • therapeutic applications
  • biomaterials

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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19 pages, 3596 KB  
Article
Regulatory T Cells Boost Efficacy of Post-Infarction Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiovascular Progenitor Cell Transplants
by Aline Derisio de Lima, Hernán Gonzalez-King Garibotti, Qing-Dong Wang, Cecilia Graneli, Tania Incitti, Valérie Bellamy, Maria Eduarda Anastácio Borges Corrêa, Myriam Assal, Makoto Miyara, Jean-Sébastien Silvestre, Karin Jennbacken and Philippe Menasché
Cells 2025, 14(13), 956; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells14130956 - 23 Jun 2025
Viewed by 2354
Abstract
Cell therapy is promising for heart failure treatment, with growing interest in cardiovascular progenitor cells (CPCs) from pluripotent stem cells. A major challenge is managing the immune response, due to their allogeneic source. Regulatory T cells (Treg) offer an alternative to pharmacological immunosuppression [...] Read more.
Cell therapy is promising for heart failure treatment, with growing interest in cardiovascular progenitor cells (CPCs) from pluripotent stem cells. A major challenge is managing the immune response, due to their allogeneic source. Regulatory T cells (Treg) offer an alternative to pharmacological immunosuppression by inducing immune tolerance. This study assesses whether Treg therapy can mitigate the xeno-immune response, improving cardiac outcomes in a mouse model of human CPC intramyocardial transplantation. CPCs stimulated immune responses in allogeneic and xenogeneic settings, causing proliferation in T cell subsets. Tregs showed immunosuppressive effects on T lymphocyte populations when co-cultured with CPCs. Post infarction, CPCs were transplanted intramyocardially into an immune-competent mouse model 3 weeks after myocardial infarction. Human or murine Tregs were intravenously administered on transplantation day and three days later. Control groups received CPCs without Tregs or saline (PBS). CPCs with Tregs improved LV systolic function in three weeks, linked to reduced myocardial fibrosis and enhanced angiogenesis. This was accompanied by decreased splenocyte NK cell populations and pro-inflammatory cytokine levels in cardiac tissue. Treg therapy with CPC transplantation enhances cardiac functional and structural outcomes in mice. Though it does not directly avert graft rejection, it primarily affects NKG2D+ cytotoxic cells, indicating systemic immune modulation and remote heart repair benefits. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Potential of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells)
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Review

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47 pages, 4643 KB  
Review
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells in Non-Model Species: Applications and Challenges
by Qiuye Bao, Nicole Liling Tay, Christina Yingyan Lim, Shangzhe Xie, Soon Chye Ng and Oz Pomp
Cells 2026, 15(17), 1565; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells15171565 - 28 Aug 2026
Viewed by 260
Abstract
Induced pluripotent stem cells have revolutionized biomedical research—yet the vast majority of life on Earth remains beyond their reach. Non-model species lack the annotated genomes, validated reagents, and species-specific culture infrastructure that make iPSC technology routine in humans and mice, and this infrastructure [...] Read more.
Induced pluripotent stem cells have revolutionized biomedical research—yet the vast majority of life on Earth remains beyond their reach. Non-model species lack the annotated genomes, validated reagents, and species-specific culture infrastructure that make iPSC technology routine in humans and mice, and this infrastructure deficit, compounded by genuine biological differences in pluripotency network architecture across taxa, is what has kept the field narrow. The deep conservation of the core pluripotency network across vertebrates suggests that reprogramming may, in principle, be achievable across a far broader range of species than currently demonstrated—though the extent to which this holds across more divergent taxa remains to be established. This review consolidates current progress and future potential of iPSC technology across five domains: technical reprogramming challenges and advances; conservation applications including genetic rescue, in vitro gametogenesis, and de-extinction; medical applications within a one medicine framework; agricultural applications spanning disease resistance, climate resilience, and cultured meat; and species-specific iPSC-derived systems in ecotoxicology. Throughout, we distinguish what has been demonstrated from what remains aspirational and identify the priorities that will determine whether the iPSC revolution can be extended—rigorously and at scale—beyond model organism research. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Potential of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells)
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48 pages, 5608 KB  
Review
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells-Based Regenerative Therapies in Treating Human Aging-Related Functional Decline and Diseases
by Peijie Yu, Bin Liu, Cheng Dong and Yun Chang
Cells 2025, 14(8), 619; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells14080619 - 21 Apr 2025
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 6772
Abstract
A significant increase in life expectancy worldwide has resulted in a growing aging population, accompanied by a rise in aging-related diseases that pose substantial societal, economic, and medical challenges. This trend has prompted extensive efforts within many scientific and medical communities to develop [...] Read more.
A significant increase in life expectancy worldwide has resulted in a growing aging population, accompanied by a rise in aging-related diseases that pose substantial societal, economic, and medical challenges. This trend has prompted extensive efforts within many scientific and medical communities to develop and enhance therapies aimed at delaying aging processes, mitigating aging-related functional decline, and addressing aging-associated diseases to extend health span. Research in aging biology has focused on unraveling various biochemical and genetic pathways contributing to aging-related changes, including genomic instability, telomere shortening, and cellular senescence. The advent of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), derived through reprogramming human somatic cells, has revolutionized disease modeling and understanding in humans by addressing the limitations of conventional animal models and primary human cells. iPSCs offer significant advantages over other pluripotent stem cells, such as embryonic stem cells, as they can be obtained without the need for embryo destruction and are not restricted by the availability of healthy donors or patients. These attributes position iPSC technology as a promising avenue for modeling and deciphering mechanisms that underlie aging and associated diseases, as well as for studying drug effects. Moreover, iPSCs exhibit remarkable versatility in differentiating into diverse cell types, making them a promising tool for personalized regenerative therapies aimed at replacing aged or damaged cells with healthy, functional equivalents. This review explores the breadth of research in iPSC-based regenerative therapies and their potential applications in addressing a spectrum of aging-related conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Potential of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells)
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