Enrichment of a bipotent hepatic progenitor cell from naïve adult liver tissue.
OBJECTIVE
Recent interest in the liver stem cell field has led to the identification and characterization of several hepatic progenitor cell populations from fetal and adult tissues. We isolated a hepatic progenitor cell from naïve adult liver and the current studies focus on differentiation and growth.


RESULTS
A Sca-1(+) hepatic progenitor cell was identified within the liver parenchyma. This cell expresses numerous liver related genes and transcription found in the developing and/or adult liver. It is located in the peri-portal region and expresses markers associated with undifferentiated hepatic cell populations, mature hepatocytes and biliary cells which distinguish it from the Sca-1(-) fraction.


CONCLUSIONS
This hepatic progenitor cell from uninjured liver has features of both hepatocytic and biliary populations and demonstrates proliferative potential. Further studies will focus on sca-HPC subsets and conditions that regulate differentiation towards hepatic or biliary lineages.
Wright
Natasha
N
Department of Surgery, University of North Carolina, CB#7211, 4024 Burnett-Womack Building, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7211, USA.
Samuelson
Lisa
L
Walkup
Maggie H
MH
Chandrasekaran
Prakash
P
Gerber
David A
DA
D053687:Adult Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D000818:Animals; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000166:cytology*; D008099:Liver / Q000166:cytology*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL