What are the differences between totipotent, pluripotent and multipotent stem cells?

The primary difference between totipotent, pluripotent, and multipotent stem cells is their potential to differentiate into other cell types.

Totipotent stem cells

• Totipotent stem cells can differentiate into any other type of cell in the body as well as the extraembryonic or placental cells. 
• They can make more of themselves or pluripotent stem cells, the entire embryo that will develop into the final organism, and even the placenta and umbilical cord that are crucial for development. 
• The first few cells that appear as the zygote starts to divide are totipotent.

Pluripotent stem cells 

• Pluripotent stem cells or PSCs can differentiate into almost any cell type that makes up the body. 
• They can form the entire embryo of a developing organism. 
• The two most well-known types of pluripotent stem cells are embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. 
• The limitations of PSCs are their inability to form the placenta, umbilical cord, or totipotent stem cells. 
• Cells from the early embryo are pluripotent.

Multipotent stem cells

• Multipotent stem cells can differentiate into more than one cell type but only from a closely related family of cells. 
• For example, adult hematopoietic stem cells can only differentiate into red blood cells, white blood cells, or platelets. They cannot develop into other cell types. 
• Adult stem cells and cord blood stem cells are multipotent.