title: Size-dependent in vivo growth potential of adult rat hepatocytes.
abstract: The present study was performed to determine whether hepatocytes show a size-dependent growth in vivo using as a growth assay system, a retrorsine/partial hepatectomy model of dipeptidyl dipeptidase IV-deficient (DPPIV(-)) mutant Fischer rats. Nearly pure populations of small hepatocytes (SHs) and parenchymal hepatocytes (PHs) were prepared from DPPIV(+) rats. The same number of these SHs and PHs was transplanted into the liver of retrorsine-treated and two-thirds partial hepatectomized DPPIV(-) rats. At 21 days after transplantation, colonies derived from donor hepatocytes were detected as DPPIV(+) cells by enzyme histochemistry. SHs were approximately three times more proliferative than PHs (673 +/- 25 cells/colony versus 226 +/- 10 cells/colony, mean +/- SE). SHs were subfractionated by a fluorescence-activated cell sorter into SH-R2s and SH-R3s. SH-R3s showed a lower extent of granularity and autofluorescence, and a smaller size than SH-R2s that showed characteristics similar to PHs. The growth potential of SH-R3s assayed as above was approximately three times higher than that of SH-R2s (1,101 +/- 46 cells/colony versus 341 +/- 13 cells). These results indicate that the in vivo growth potential of hepatocytes is heterogeneous and is correlated with their size, and the extent of their granularity and autofluorescence.
authors.affiliation: Hiroshima Tissue Regeneration Project, Higashihiroshima, Japan.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Katayama
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Tateno
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Asahara
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yoshizato
mesh_terms: D000418:Albumins / Q000032:analysis; D000818:Animals; D002452:Cell Count; D002455:Cell Division; D048429:Cell Size / Q000502:physiology; D017690:Cell Transplantation; D002999:Clone Cells / Q000166:cytology; D018819:Dipeptidyl Peptidase 4 / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000201:enzymology; D007633:Keratins / Q000032:analysis; D008099:Liver / Q000737:chemistry / Q000166:cytology; D008297:Male; D010641:Phenotype; D051381:Rats; D011916:Rats, Inbred F344; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D000418:Albumins; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins; D007633:Keratins; D018819:Dipeptidyl Peptidase 4