Long-term maintenance of hepatocyte functional activity in co-culture: requirements for sinusoidal endothelial cells and dexamethasone.
Sinusoidal cells isolated from adult rat liver have been established in primary culture and in cell line. The presence of factor VIII R:Ag and peroxidatic/phagocytosis activities were the criteria used to distinguish in freshly isolated cells the endothelial cells from the Kupffer cells and suggested the endothelial origin of the cell line. Using a co-culture system, the effect of sinusoidal liver cells on hepatocyte functional activity was characterized. A plateau in which the state of differentiation was stabilized could be generated for co-cultured hepatocytes isolated from adult rat and a disappearance of the initial expression of alpha 1-fetoprotein (AFP) and the increase and/or maintenance of albumin secretion were measured with co-cultured hepatocytes isolated from suckling rat. The presence of dexamethasone was required for such beneficial effect. The hepatocyte-stabilizing activity was also produced by a pulmonary endothelial cell line.
D002450:Cell Communication; D002460:Cell Line; D002469:Cell Separation; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003584:Cytological Techniques; D003907:Dexamethasone / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004727:Endothelium / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology; D008099:Liver / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D013997:Time Factors
D003907:Dexamethasone