Gene Expression Profiles of HLA-G1 Overexpressed in hES Cells

The goals of this study were to analyze the change in the global gene expression profile of exogenous human leukocyte antigen-G1 (HLA-G1) overexpressed in human embryonic stem (hES) cells and to explore the molecular mechanism by which the overexpression of HLA-G1 modifies immunologic pathways. Microarray and quantitative real-time PCR analyses were performed to quantify the differential expression pattern of HLA-G1 + H1 hES cells. The results showed that HLA-G1 differentially regulated the expression of 425 genes with at least a twofold increase or decrease. These differentially expressed genes were classified into 13 functional groups, including cellular components, biological processes, and molecular functions. The pathways of focal adhesion, the TGF-beta signaling pathway, and the immune response were the most predominantly affected. The synergism of these genes could explain the mechanism of the immunosuppression of HLA-G1 + H1 hES cells. Thus, the expression pattern reflected a broad spectrum of roles of HLA-G1 in hES cells.