Stem cells for liver repopulation.
OBJECTIVE
The capacity of the liver to regenerate and maintain a constant size despite injury is unique. However, the exact mechanisms are not completely clear. Cell transplantation has been proposed as an alternative treatment of liver diseases. Recent progress has been reported on the generation of stem/progenitor cells that may differentiate toward the hepatic lineage. However, it is currently difficult to determine which of the stem/progenitor cell populations are the best for therapy of a given disease.


RESULTS
The limited access to donor human hepatocytes has led to a great interest in the generation of hepatocyte-like cells. Several potential cell sources have been identified. However, general standardization of the methods to evaluate these cells is particularly important for the promise of stem/progenitor-derived hepatocyte-based therapies. Moreover, innovations aimed at improving hepatocyte delivery, survival, and engraftment have recently opened the field of organ engineering that may improve liver repopulation.


CONCLUSIONS
Here we review current evidence reported from the perspective of potential clinical applications of different hepatic cell sources with repopulation capacities and the future perspectives and tools that can facilitate the translation of laboratory work into clinical success.
Center for Engineering in Medicine and Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA.
Alejandro
A
Soto-Gutierrez
Nalu
N
Navarro-Alvarez
Hiroshi
H
Yagi
Martin L
ML
Yarmush
D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D019070:Cell Lineage; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D008115:Liver Regeneration; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation; D013234:Stem Cells