Trajectory reconstruction identifies dysregulation of perinatal maturation programs in pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes

A limitation in the application of pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (PSC-CMs) is the failure of these cells to achieve full functional maturity. The mechanisms by which directed differentiation differs from endogenous development, leading to consequent PSC-CM maturation arrest, remain unclear. Here, we generate a single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) reference of mouse in vivo CM maturation with exten-sive sampling of previously difficult-to-isolate perinatal time periods. We subsequently generate isogenic embryonic stem cells to create an in vitro scRNA-seq reference of PSC-CM-directed differentiation. Through trajectory reconstruction, we identify an endogenous perinatal maturation program that is poorly recapitu-lated in vitro. By comparison with published human datasets, we identify a network of nine transcription fac-tors (TFs) whose targets are consistently dysregulated in PSC-CMs across species. Notably, these TFs are only partially activated in common ex vivo approaches to engineer PSC-CM maturation. Our study can be leveraged toward improving the clinical viability of PSC-CMs.

Automated summary

A limitation in the application of pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (PSC-CMs) is their failure to achieve full functional maturity. In this study, the authors generated reference maps of mouse in vivo cardiomyocyte maturation and PSC-CM-directed differentiation through single-cell RNA sequencing. They identified an endogenous perinatal maturation program that is poorly recapitulated in vitro and uncovered a network of nine transcription factors consistently dysregulated in PSC-CMs across species. These findings have implications for improving the clinical viability of PSC-CMs.