The key difference between pluripotent and multipotent stem cells is that the pluripotent cells have the ability to differentiate into any cell type of the three germ layers while the multipotent stem cells have the ability to develop into a limited range of specific cell types.
Certain cells have the ability to differentiate into other types of specialized cells. This ability is called as cell potency. When a cell is able to differentiate into more cell types, that particular cell has great potency. Likewise, the stem cells have great cell potency. They are undifferentiated cells of multicellular organisms which can divide rapidly and differentiate into other cell types. Accordingly, there are two main types of stem cells. Namely, they are embryonic stem cells and adult stem cells. Based on the ability to differentiate into cell types, some stem cells are totipotent while some are pluripotent and multipotent. Pluripotent stem cells can become any type of cells in the three germ layers while multipotent stem cells can differentiate into specific cell types. Accordingly, embryonic stem cells are pluripotent cells. On the other hand, blood stem cells are multipotent stem cells.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What are Pluripotent Stem Cells
3. What are Multipotent Stem Cells
4. Similarities Between Pluripotent and Multipotent Stem Cells
5. Side by Side Comparison – Pluripotent vs Multipotent Stem Cells in Tabular Form
6. Summary
What are Pluripotent Stem Cells?
Pluripotent stem cells are the undifferentiated cells that appear during the embryonic development. These cells have a great potential to differentiate into any cell type of the three germ layers; endoderm, ectoderm, and mesoderm. Embryonic stem cells are the best example for pluripotent stem cells. Furthermore, pluripotency can be achieved artificially by inducing it.
Figure 01: Pluripotent Stem Cells
A non-pluripotent cell converts into the induced pluripotent cell by forcing the expression of certain genes and transcriptional factors. In this way, an adult somatic cell which is not pluripotent can be converted into the induced pluripotent cell. These induced pluripotent stem cells are important in drug development and modelling of diseases.
What are Multipotent Stem Cells?
Multipotent stem cells are the cells that have the ability to differentiate into more than one specific type of cells. However, unlike pluripotent stem cells, these cells can differentiate into a limited number of specific cell types. In other words, they have a low relative potency than the pluripotent stem cells. The ability of differentiation restricted into cell types within one particular lineage.
Figure 02: Multipotent Stem Cells
The best example for multipotent stem cells is the blood stem cell. Blood stem cell can differentiate into specific blood cells such as lymphocytes, monocytes, neutrophils, etc. Adult stem cells, neural stem cells and mesenchymal stem cells are also types of multipotent stem cells. They have the ability to self-renew; hence, they are available in many tissues of an adult. Multipotent stem cells are important in the treatments of disorders such as spinal cord injury, bone fracture, autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, hematopoietic defects, and fertility preservation.
What are the Similarities Between Pluripotent and Multipotent Stem Cells?
- Pluripotent and multipotent stem cells have the ability to differentiate into other types of cells.
- Also, they are undifferentiated cells or unspecialized cells.
- Furthermore, both types have a low relative potency than the totipotent stem cells.
- Pluripotent stem cells actually undergo specialization into multipotent stem cells.
What is the Difference Between Pluripotent and Multipotent Stem Cells?
Pluripotent and multipotent stem cells are two types of stem cells, which are undifferentiated cells. However, a difference between pluripotent and multipotent stem cells is that the pluripotent stem cells have relatively more potency than the multipotent stem cells. It is due to the fact that, pluripotent stem cells have an ability to differentiate into many cell types while multipotent stem cells have an ability to differentiate into a limited number of cell types within a lineage. Therefore, this is the key difference between pluripotent and multipotent stem cells.
The below infographic on difference between pluripotent and multipotent stem cells shows more differences between both with examples.
Summary – Pluripotent vs Multipotent Stem Cells
Totipotency, pluripotency, multipotency and unipotency are four different types of cell potency. Pluripotent stem cells have the ability to differentiate into any cell type of the three germ layers. On the other hand, multipotent stem cells have the potential to differentiate into specific cell types within a particular lineage. Thus, this is the key difference between pluripotent and multipotent stem cells. Furthermore, pluripotent cells are found in blastocyst while multipotent stem cells are found in many tissues of an adult. The best example of pluripotent stem cells is the embryonic stem cells while the best example of multipotent stem cells is the blood stem cells.
Reference:
1.“Cell Potency.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Oct. 2018. Available here
2.“Stem Cell Basics I.” National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Available here
Image Courtesy:
1.”Human embryonic stem cells”By Nissim Benvenisty – Russo E. (2005) (CC BY 2.5) via Commons Wikimedia
2.”Hematopoiesis (human) diagram en”By A. Rad, (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia