title: Probing hepatocyte heterogeneity.
abstract: To maintain homeostasis, organs replace cells lost through normal cellular turnover, often through the straightforward replication of existing cells. A recent paper in Nature shows that cells in the liver are not equivalent when it comes to their replicative capacity; rather, a subset of hepatocytes defined by the maintenance of active Wnt signaling bears the brunt of responsibility for maintaining liver mass.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Medicine and Cell and Developmental Biology, BRB II/III, Rm. 512, 421 Curie Boulevard, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104.
authors.forename: Ben Z
authors.initials: BZ
authors.lastname: Stanger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D060466:Axin Protein / Q000378:metabolism*; D004171:Diploidy; D005260:Female; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D006706:Homeostasis; D008099:Liver / Q000166:cytology*; D008297:Male
chemical_list: D060466:Axin Protein