Description
Pluripotent-specific inhibitors (PluriSIns) make a powerful tool for studying the mechanisms that control the survival of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs). Here we characterize PluriSIn#2 as a novel selective indirect inhibitor of topoisomerase II alpha (TOP2A). We find that TOP2A is uniquely expressed in undifferentiated hPSCs, and that its inhibition results in their rapid cell death. These findings reveal a dependency of hPSCs on the activity of TOP2A, which can be harnessed for their selective elimination from culture.