Stem Cell Core
The mission of the Whitehead Institute Human Stem Cell Facility is to provide essential services for research on human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to researchers at Whitehead Institute, MIT, and beyond. Founded in 2005, the facility is directed by Maya Mitalipova, one of the scientists who isolated the first human embryonic stem cell lines confirmed by the National Institutes of Health in 2001. With more than two decades of experience in the field and having isolated 19 hESC lines used by leading labs worldwide, Mitalipova and her team offer researchers direct access to some of the deepest institutional knowledge in human pluripotent stem cell biology.
1. Serves as a central repository and distribution center for hESC and iPSC lines, including lines developed at Whitehead Institute that are used by research groups around the world.
2. Provides hands-on training in the thawing, maintenance, expansion, differentiation, and cryopreservation of hESCs and iPSCs.
3. Provides consultation and hands-on support for reprogramming somatic cells into iPSCs.
4. Designs and executes differentiation protocols to guide hESCs and iPSCs toward specific cell types (e.g., neurons) for disease modeling.
5. Provides genome editing services on hESC and iPSC lines using CRISPR/Cas9, including single-nucleotide replacement and gene knock-in/knockout.
6. Provides banking services for researchers' own iPSC lines.
7. Provides karyotyping and other quality-control assays to confirm genomic stability and pluripotency of hESC and iPSC lines.
8. Assists researchers with experimental design and troubleshooting throughout the life of a project, which for stem cell studies can run six months or longer.
9. Opens the laboratory to Whitehead Institute researchers to initiate their own hESC/iPSC research, with training and supervision provided by facility staff.
10. Serves as a resource for researchers navigating institutional oversight and materials transfer agreements related to hESC and iPSC work.
Maisam (Maya) Mitalipova, Director
mitalipo@wi.mit.edu :: 617-258-5185
Dongdong Fu, Technical Associate
dongdong@wi.mit.edu :: 617-258-5207