Preface

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), including human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), are stem cells with self-renewal and multilineage differentiation potential. For decades, we and other investigators in the field have been devoted to verifying the balance of pluripotency and early germ layer specialization of the mesoderm, endoderm, and ectoderm. State-of-the-art literature has put forward the feasibility of hPSCs for the ex vivo, large-scale preparation of stem cells and concomitant functional cells, including hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), neural stem cells (NSCs), mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs), and immune cells (e.g., natural killer cells, T cells, megakaryocytes). Meanwhile, numerous studies have indicated the involvement of hPSCs in disease remodeling and drug screening based on diverse preclinical and clinical practices.

In this book, we mainly focus on the definition and the latest updates of hPSCs in regenerative medicine and cell preparation. For instance, MSCs derived from hPSCs reveal preferable bidirectional immunomodulation and long-term in vitro expansion over diverse counterparts from adult tissues such as adipose tissue (AD-MSCs), bone marrow (BM-MSCs), and dental pulp (DPSCs). Overall, the book highlights the feasibility of hPSCs-based cytotherapy for potential clinical applications in the future, including further development of disease remodeling and drug screening.

> **Leisheng Zhang** The Fourth People's Hospital of Jinan, Jinan, China

The Teaching Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Shandong Province, China

> Gansu Provincial Hospital, Lanzhou, China

Section 1
