title: Expression patterns of epiplakin1 in pancreas, pancreatic cancer and regenerating pancreas.
abstract: Epiplakin1 (Eppk1) is a plakin family gene with its function remains largely unknown, although the plakin genes are known to function in interconnecting cytoskeletal filaments and anchoring them at plasma membrane-associated adhesive junction. Here we analyzed the expression patterns of Eppk1 in the developing and adult pancreas in the mice. In the embryonic pancreas, Eppk1+/Pdx1+ and Eppk1+/Sox9+ pancreatic progenitor cells were observed in early pancreatic epithelium. Since Pdx1 expression overlapped with that of Sox9 at this stage, these multipotent progenitor cells are Eppk1+/Pdx1+/Sox9+ cells. Then Eppk1 expression becomes confined to Ngn3+ or Sox9+ endocrine progenitor cells, and p48+ exocrine progenitor cells, and then restricted to the duct cells and a cells at birth. In the adult pancreas, Eppk1 is expressed in centroacinar cells (CACs) and in duct cells. Eppk1 is observed in pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PanIN), previously identified as pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) precursor lesions. In addition, the expansion of Eppk1-positive cells occurs in a caerulein-induced acute pancreatitis, an acinar cell regeneration model. Furthermore, in the partial pancreatectomy (Px) regeneration model using mice, Eppk1 is expressed in "ducts in foci", a tubular structure transiently induced. These results suggest that Eppk1 serves as a useful marker for detecting pancreatic progenitor cells in developing and regenerating pancreas.
authors.affiliation: Division of Stem Cell Biology, Department of Regeneration Medicine, Institute of Molecular Embryology and Genetics, Japan.
authors.forename: Tetsu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Nobuaki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shiraki
authors.forename: Hideo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Baba
authors.forename: Mizuki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Goto
authors.forename: Sakuhei
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fujiwara
authors.forename: Kazuhiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kume
authors.forename: Shoen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kume
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001324:Autoantigens / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D021441:Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000502:physiology*; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic / Q000502:physiology; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D010179:Pancreas / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D012038:Regeneration / Q000502:physiology*; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D001324:Autoantigens; D015415:Biomarkers; C426678:epiplakin