title: Involvement of cell junctions in hepatocyte culture functionality.
abstract: In liver, like in other multicellular systems, the establishment of cellular contacts is a prerequisite for normal functioning. In particular, well-defined cell junctions between hepatocytes, including adherens junctions, desmosomes, tight junctions, and gap junctions, are known to play key roles in the performance of liver-specific functionality. In a first part of this review article, we summarize the current knowledge concerning cell junctions and their roles in hepatic (patho)physiology. In a second part, we discuss their relevance in liver-based in vitro modeling, thereby highlighting the use of primary hepatocyte cultures as suitable in vitro models for preclinical pharmaco-toxicological testing. We further describe the actual strategies to regain and maintain cell junctions in these in vitro systems over the long-term.
authors.affiliation: Department of Toxicology, Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), Brussels, Belgium. mvinken@vub.ac.be
authors.forename: Mathieu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vinken
authors.forename: Peggy
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Papeleu
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Snykers
authors.forename: Evelien
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: De Rop
authors.forename: Tom
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Henkens
authors.forename: James Kevin
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Chipman
authors.forename: Vera
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Rogiers
authors.forename: Tamara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Vanhaecke
mesh_terms: D022005:Adherens Junctions / Q000502:physiology*; D017629:Gap Junctions / Q000502:physiology; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007365:Intercellular Junctions / Q000502:physiology*; D019108:Tight Junctions / Q000502:physiology