title: The existence of epithelial-to-mesenchymal cells with the ability to support hematopoiesis in human fetal liver.
abstract: The fetal liver is the major hematopoietic organ during mid-gestation, and it is also a source of stem cells that exist in a complex environment. In this study, we isolated a population of actively replicating cells with the characteristic of the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) from fetal liver. These cells were identified with the epithelial markers, including alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), albumin (ALB), cytokeratins (CK) 7, and CK18, as well as the mesenchymal markers, such as alpha-smooth muscle actin (ASMA), CD29, CD44, CD49, CD54, collagen I and osteopontin (OPN). Furthermore, they also expressed some hematopoiesis-related genes. In addition, the cell population had the ability to retain hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) in an undifferentiated state in vitro during cytokine-stimulated proliferation. These results provide an insight about early human liver development and may also help to understand hematopoiesis in the fetal liver.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Biomembrane and Membrane Biotechnology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100080, PR China.
authors.forename: Haojian
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Zhenchuan
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Miao
authors.forename: Zuping
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Yuxia
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Yun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Meifu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Feng
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism*; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D005333:Fetus / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D006410:Hematopoiesis; D006412:Hematopoietic Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D008648:Mesoderm / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers