Coculture and Long-Term Maintenance of Hepatocytes.
The liver is the largest internal organ in mammals, serving a wide spectrum of vital functions. Loss of liver function due to drug toxicity, progressive fatty liver disease, or viral infection is a major cause of death in the United States of America. Pharmaceutical and cosmetic toxicity screening, basic research and the development of bioartificial liver devices require long-term hepatocyte culture techniques that sustain hepatocyte morphology and function. In recent years, several techniques have been developed that can support high levels of liver-specific gene expression, metabolic function, and synthetic activity for several weeks in culture. These include the collagen double gel configuration, hepatocyte spheroids, coculture with nonparenchymal cells, and micropatterned cocultures. This chapter will cover the current status of hepatocyte culture techniques, including media formulation, oxygen supply, and heterotypic cell-cell interactions.
Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
Merav
M
Cohen
Gahl
G
Levy
Yaakov
Y
Nahmias
D000818:Animals; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques; D018920:Coculture Techniques; D003470:Culture Media; D042783:Endothelial Cells / Q000166:cytology; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000166:cytology; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000166:cytology*; D006801:Humans
D003470:Culture Media