Multipotent progenitor cells derived from human umbilical cord blood can differentiate into hepatocyte-like cells in a liver injury rat model.
Umbilical cord blood (UCB), a rich source of hematopoietic stem cells, offers practical and ethical advantages. It has been reported that various adult stem cells transplanted into a damaged liver show characteristics of a hepatic lineage. In a previous study, we reported on novel UCB-derived adult stem cells, termed umbilical cord blood-derived multipotent progenitor cells (UCB-MPCs). We demonstrated that these cells were capable of differentiating into hepatocyte- like cells in vitro. To assess the hepatic differentiation capacity of UCB-MPCs, rat models of hepatic injury were generated using carbon tetra-chloride (CCl(4)) with transplantation of cells into the liver. The transplanted cells successfully incorporated into the liver of the recipient animal differentiated into functional hepatocyte-like cells that expressed hepatocyte-specific markers, such as CK-18 and albumin. Moreover, human albumin was detected in the serum of the recipient rat model. These data indicated that UCB-MPCs were capable of displaying similar characteristics to those of functional hepatocytes in a recipient liver. UCB-MPCs may prove to be a useful, transplantable alternative for hepatic progenitor cells in both experimental and therapeutic applications.
Moon
Y J
YJ
Biomedical Research Institute, LifeCord Inc., Suwon, Kyonggi, Korea; Department of Life Science of Chung-Ang University, Seoul, Korea.
Yoon
H H
HH
Lee
M W
MW
Jang
I K
IK
Lee
D-H
DH
Lee
J-H
JH
Lee
S-K
SK
Lee
K-H
KH
Kim
Y J
YJ
Eom
Y-W
YW
D000818:Animals; D002251:Carbon Tetrachloride / Q000633:toxicity; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000502:physiology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005312:Fetal Blood / Q000166:cytology*; D018380:Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D008099:Liver / Q000293:injuries* / Q000502:physiology / Q000601:surgery; D039904:Pluripotent Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000637:transplantation*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012709:Serum Albumin / Q000378:metabolism; D014183:Transplantation, Heterologous / Q000379:methods
D012709:Serum Albumin; D002251:Carbon Tetrachloride