Reprogramming of somatic cells to embryonic stem cell（ESC）-like induced pluripotent stem cells has been achieved by transfection of the four transcriptions factors（oct4, sox2, c-Myc and klf4）. Oct4 is indispensable for reprogramming, and plays important roles in transcriptional regulation, signal transduction, epigenetic modification and so on. By reviewing how Oct4 and its isoforms contribute to pluripotency maintenance in ESC, we show how Oct4 works in pluripotency regulation of cellular reprogramming. Meanwhile, this will help to provide rationale for the researches on stemness regulation by Oct4 in dental pulp stem cell.
