title: Establishment of immortalized rat Kupffer cell lines.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Kupffer cells have been implicated in the pathogenesis of various liver diseases. Primary cultures of Kupffer cells have a very limited life span, tend to de-differentiate and become senescent, and therefore are not suitable for cell signaling studies.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To establish immortalized rat Kupffer cell lines that facilitate mechanistic studies of cell signaling and signal transduction.
  
  
  METHODS
  Rat Kupffer cells were sub-cultured with EGF to obtain rat Kupffer Cell line 1 (RKC1), and subsequently transfected with Simian Virus 40 Large T-antigen expression vector to obtain rat Kupffer Cell line 2 (RKC2).
  
  
  RESULTS
  RKC1 and RKC2 are similar to primary Kupffer cells as they express the molecular markers ED1, ED2, ED3, and F4/80, and upregulate TNF-alpha, IL-6, IL-1beta, Fas /FasL, and NF-kappaB, as well as TLR4 in response to LPS or pancreatic elastase. Additionally, RKC1 and RKC2 maintain phagocytic properties of latex beads and exhibit increased telomerase and stabilized p53 activity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Immortalized RKC1 and RKC2 cells maintain properties of primary Kupffer cells and can be valuable tools in evaluating the role of Kupffer cells in immune diseases and in liver-cell based drug discovery.
authors.affiliation: James A. Haley Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Department of Surgery, University of South Florida Health Sciences Center, C/O Tampa General Hospital, Tampa, FL 33601, USA.
authors.forename: Yanhua
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.forename: Michel M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Murr
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques; D002460:Cell Line; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D016207:Cytokines / Q000096:biosynthesis; D007728:Kupffer Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology; D010587:Phagocytosis; D051381:Rats; D019098:Telomerase / Q000378:metabolism; D014162:Transfection; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53; D019098:Telomerase