Lineage Specifiers: New Players in the Induction of Pluripotency

Pluripotency-associated factors and their rivals, lineage specifiers, have long been considered the determining factors for the identity of pluripotent and differentiated cells, respectively. Therefore, factors that are employed for cellular reprogramming in order to induce pluripotency have been identified mainly from embryonic stem cell (ESC)-enriched and pluripotency-associated factors. Recently, lineage specifiers have been identified to play important roles in orchestrating the process of restoring pluripotency. In this review, we summarize the latest discoveries regarding cell fate conversion using pluripotency-associated factors and lineage specifiers. We highlight the value of the “seesaw” model in defining cellular identity, opening up a novel scenario to consider pluripotency and lineage specification.