Actomyosin Contractility is a Potent Suppressor of Mesoderm Induction by Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

According to a preprint abstract, the activation of WNT signaling in human pluripotent stem cells leads to the conversion to lateral mesoderm, which can further differentiate into cardiomyocytes. Surprisingly, the contraction of stem cell colonies that occurs after WNT activation delays mesoderm induction by restraining the accumulation of active beta-catenin. Suppressing contractility actually accelerates differentiation, while increasing contractility blocks mesoderm induction. This research suggests that contractility plays a role as a temporal gate in the process of mesoderm induction. [Extracted from the article]