E-cadherin synergistically induces hepatospecific phenotype and maturation of embryonic stem cells in conjunction with hepatotrophic factors.
Since effective cell sourcing is a major challenge for the therapeutic management of liver disease and liver failure, embryonic stem (ES) cells are being widely investigated as a promising source of hepatic-like cells with their proliferative and pluripotent capacities. Cell-cell interactions are crucial in embryonic development modulating adhesive and signaling functions; specifically, the cell-cell adhesion ligand, cadherin is instrumental in gastrulation and hepatic morphogenesis. Inspired by the role of cadherins in development, we investigated the role of expression of E-cadherin in cultured murine ES cells on the induction of hepatospecific phenotype and maturation. The cadherin-expressing embryonic stem (CE-ES) cells intrinsically formed pronounced cell aggregates and cuboidal morphology whereas cadherin-deficient cadherin-expressing embryonic stem (CD-ES) cells remained more spread out and corded in morphology. Through controlled stimulation with single or combined forms of hepatotrophic growth factors; hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), dexamethasone (DEX) and oncostatin M (OSM), we investigated the progressive maturation of CE-ES cells, in relation to the control, CD-ES cells. Upon growth factor treatment, the CE-ES cells adopted a more compacted morphology, which exhibited a significant hepatocyte-like cuboidal appearance in the presence of DEX-OSM-HGF. In contrast, the CD-ES cells exhibited a mixed morphology and appeared to be more elongated in the presence of DEX-OSM-HGF. Reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction was used to delineate the most differentiating condition in terms of early (alpha-fetoprotein (AFP)), mid (albumin), and late-hepatic (glucose-6-phosphatase) markers in relation to growth factor presentation for both CE-ES and CD-ES cells. We report that following the most differentiating condition of DEX-OSM-HGF stimulation, CE-ES cells expressed increased levels of albumin and glucose-6-phosphatase, whereas the CD-ES cells showed low levels of AFP and marginal levels of albumin and glucose-6-phosphatase. These trends suggest that the membrane expression of E-cadherin in ES cells can elicit a marked response to growth factor stimulation and lead to the induction of later stages of hepatocytic maturation. Thus, cadherin-engineered ES cells could be used to harness the cross-talk between the hepatotrophic and cadherin-based signaling pathways for controlled acceleration of ES hepatodifferentiation.
Dasgupta
Anouska
A
Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Rutgers University, 98 Brett Road, Piscataway, New Jersey 08873, USA.
Hughey
Rebecca
R
Lancin
Perry
P
Larue
Lionel
L
Moghe
Prabhas V
PV
D000818:Animals; D015820:Cadherins / Q000378:metabolism*; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002460:Cell Line; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental / Q000502:physiology; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D010641:Phenotype; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods*
D015820:Cadherins