Ian Chambers | The University of Edinburgh

Professor of Pluripotent Stem Cell Biology

Centre for Regenerative Medicine
Institute for Regeneration and Repair
Head of Institute, Institute for Stem Cell Research, School of Biological Sciences

Tel: 0131 651 9500
Email: i.chambers@ed.ac.uk

Street: Centre for Regenerative Medicine
Institute for Regeneration and Repair
The University of Edinburgh
Edinburgh BioQuarter
5 Little France Drive
City: Edinburgh
Post code: EH16 4UU

Biography

Background

1983 - BSc (Honours, 1st Class): Biochemistry, Strathclyde, Glasgow
1987 - PhD: Beatson Institute for Cancer Research, Glasgow
1987 - 1991: Postdoc with Nobel Laureate Paul Berg, Stanford, USA
1991 - 2006: Senior Postdoc with Austin Smith, Edinburgh
2007 - 2010: Reader, Edinburgh
2010 - present: Professor of Pluripotent Stem Cell Biology, Edinburgh
2020 - present: Associate Director, Centre for Regenerative Medicine

Research

Research summary

Embryonic stem cell biology

We study embryonic stem cells (ESCs). These cells are pluripotent, meaning they can change into all the cell types of our bodies (differentiation). ESCs can also divide to produce cells identical to themselves, a process termed self-renewal. The simultaneous possession of these properties is what makes ESCs useful.

Pluripotent cell identity is controlled by the action of transcription factors (TFs) that together form cell-specific gene regulatory networks. In ESCs the gene regulatory network is centred on the TFs OCT4, SOX2 and NANOG. We identified NANOG in a genetic screen, searching for molecules that could allow ESCs to self-renew in the absence of the otherwise obligatory cytokine, LIF. Because of this phenotype, we named it Nanog, after Tir nan Og, the mythological Celtic land of the ever-young, where visitors remain unaged. We use Nanog as a tool to investigate how pluripotent cells are regulated.

Aims and areas of interest

We study the control of pluripotent stem cell identity, focussing on three strands: (i) how transcription factors (TFs) interact with partner proteins and chromatin to direct efficient self-renewal, (ii) how changes in TF interactions drive commitment to differentiate, (iii) how the pluripotency TF network is reconfigured to enable entry to the germline.

Publications

Differential repression of Otx2 underlies the capacity of NANOG and ESRRB to induce germline entry (8 pages) 11 Jan 2022 In: Stem Cell Reports, vol. 17, pp. 35-42
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stemcr.2021.11.013
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
Loss of Resf1 reduces the efficiency of embryonic stem cell self-renewal and germline entry (11 pages) 5 Oct 2021 In: Life Science Alliance, vol. 4
DOI: https://doi.org/10.26508/lsa.202101190
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (E-pub ahead of print)
Direct repression of Nanog and Oct4 by OTX2 modulates contribution of epiblast-derived cells to germline and somatic lineage (67 pages) 19 Apr 2021 In: Development
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1242/dev.199166
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
Phosphorylation of NANOG by CASEIN KINASE I regulates embryonic stem cell self-renewal (12 pages) 15 Jan 2021 In: FEBS Letters, vol. 595, pp. 14-25
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/1873-3468.13969
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
TET1 interacts directly with NANOG via independent domains containing hydrophobic and aromatic residues 20 Nov 2020 In: Journal of Molecular Biology, vol. 432, pp. 6075-6091
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmb.2020.10.008
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
Competence to epithelialise coincides with competence to differentiate in pluripotent cells (26 pages) 17 Oct 2019
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1101/809467
Research output: › Working paper (Published)
Segregation of the mouse germline and soma 4 Oct 2019 In: Cell Cycle, vol. 18, pp. 3064-3071
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15384101.2019.1672466
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Review article (E-pub ahead of print)
Endogenous epitope-tagging of Tet1, Tet2 and Tet3 identifies TET2 as a naïve pluripotency marker 3 Oct 2019 In: Life Science Alliance, vol. 2
DOI: https://doi.org/10.26508/lsa.201900516
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
Esrrb extinction triggers dismantling of naïve pluripotency and marks commitment to differentiation (20 pages) 2 Nov 2018 In: EMBO Journal, vol. 37
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15252/embj.201695476
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
OTX2 restricts entry to the mouse germline (21 pages) 3 Oct 2018 In: Nature, vol. 562, pp. 595-599
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-018-0581-5
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
Functional dissection of the enhancer repertoire in human embryonic stem cells (22 pages) 2 Aug 2018 In: Cell Stem Cell, vol. 23, pp. 276–288
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stem.2018.06.014
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
Dynamic changes in Sox2 spatio-temporal expression promote the second cell fate decision through Fgf4/Fgfr2 signaling in preimplantation mouse embryos (15 pages) 20 Mar 2018 In: Biochemical Journal, vol. 475, pp. 1075-1089
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1042/BCJ20170418
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
Esrrb complementation rescues development of nanog-null germ cells (8 pages) 9 Jan 2018 In: Cell Reports, vol. 22, pp. 332-339
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2017.12.060
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
Cerebral Perfusion Pressure Variability Between Patients and Between Centres. 2018 In: Acta Neurochirurgica Supplement, vol. 126, pp. 3-6
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
Distinct SoxB1 networks are required for naïve and primed pluripotency (28 pages) 19 Dec 2017 In: eLIFE, vol. 6
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.27746
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
Functional Antagonism between OTX2 and NANOG Specifies a Spectrum of Heterogeneous Identities in Embryonic Stem Cells (18 pages) 14 Nov 2017 In: Stem Cell Reports, vol. 9, pp. 1642-1659
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stemcr.2017.09.019
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
A new twist to Sin3 complexes in pluripotent cells 28 Jun 2017 In: EMBO Journal
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15252/embj.201797516
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (E-pub ahead of print)
Distinct Contributions of Tryptophan Residues within the Dimerization Domain to Nanog Function 19 May 2017 In: Journal of Molecular Biology
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmb.2016.12.001
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)
The pluripotency factor Nanog regulates pericentromeric heterochromatin organization in mouse embryonic stem cells 28 Apr 2016 In: Genes and Development
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1101/gad.275685.115
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (E-pub ahead of print)
Distinct Signaling Requirements for the Establishment of ESC Pluripotency in Late-Stage EpiSCs 14 Apr 2016 In: Cell Reports
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2016.03.073
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (E-pub ahead of print)

View all 59 publications on Research Explorer

Funders

Collaborators

Simon Tomlinson
Val Wilson
Antonio Simeone, CNR, Naples, Italy
Michiel Vermeulen, Rabdoud University, The Netherlands
Satoru Takahashi, University of Tsukuba, Japan
Laura Spagnolo, University of Glasgow

This article was published on 24 Apr, 2024