Four embryonic stem (ES) cell lines, designated CE1, CE2, CE3 and CE4, were isolated from C57BL/6J blastocysts. The ratio of normal diploid composition of these cell lines is above 70%. To examine the differentiation potential of the ES cells, the CE2 cells were injected subcutaneously into syngenic mice, and many kinds of differentiated cells were observed on the sections of the teratoma derived from this ES cell line. On the other hand, to test the chimeric ability of the ES cells, the CE2 cells were microinjected into the blastocysts of ICR mice, and a chimera was obtained among living pups. These results show that CE2 ES cells are pluripotent stem cells, which can differentiate into many kinds of cell types, and can be used as a cell system for further research.
