Table 1 Summary of bioinformatic studies used in assessing induced pluripotent and embryonic stem cell pluripotency

Gene expression profiling [14–17]

Inconsistent [19–24]

No

No unique gene expression profile may be due to small sample size or heterogeneity in iPSC quality. [19, 20, 28]

Epigenetic profiling [35, 36]

Inconsistent [19, 37, 38]

No

Further exploration of the functional consequences of epigenetic alterations is needed. [33]

Combinatorial profiling (methylation mapping and gene expression signatures) [22, 44]

Yes [22]

No

No functional differences have been linked to the detectible differences in gene expression and DNA methylation used in these studies

Scorecard profiling (gene expression and epigenetic measures with in vitro differentiation) [22, 45]

Yes [22, 45]

Yes

Differentiation propensity was linked to motor neuron differentiation efficiency and functional relevance [22, 45]