title: Myofibroblasts Derived from Hepatic Progenitor Cells Create the Tumor Microenvironment.
abstract: Hepatic progenitor cells (HPCs) appear in response to several types of chronic injury in the human and rodent liver that often develop into liver fibrosis, cirrhosis, and primary liver cancers. However, the contribution of HPCs to the pathogenesis and progression of such liver diseases remains controversial. HPCs are generally defined as cells that can differentiate into hepatocytes and cholangiocytes. In this study, however, we found that HPCs isolated from the chronically injured liver can also give rise to myofibroblasts as a third type of descendant. While myofibroblast differentiation from HPCs is not significant in culture, during tumor development, HPCs can contribute to the formation of the tumor microenvironment by producing abundant myofibroblasts that might form a niche for tumor growth and survival. Thus, HPCs can be redefined as cells with a potential for differentiation into myofibroblasts that is specifically activated during tumor formation.
authors.affiliation: Division of Organogenesis and Regeneration, Medical Institute of Bioregulation, Kyushu University, 3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan.
authors.forename: Sayaka
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sekiya
authors.affiliation: Division of Organogenesis and Regeneration, Medical Institute of Bioregulation, Kyushu University, 3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan.
authors.forename: Shizuka
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Miura
authors.affiliation: Division of Organogenesis and Regeneration, Medical Institute of Bioregulation, Kyushu University, 3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan.
authors.forename: Kanae
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Matsuda-Ito
authors.affiliation: Division of Organogenesis and Regeneration, Medical Institute of Bioregulation, Kyushu University, 3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan; Core Research for Evolutional Science and Technology, The Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, 1-7-1 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-0004, Japan. Electronic address: suzukicks@bioreg.kyushu-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Suzuki
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002452:Cell Count; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002469:Cell Separation; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002999:Clone Cells; D008099:Liver / Q000166:cytology* / Q000196:embryology; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D058628:Myofibroblasts / Q000166:cytology*; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D059016:Tumor Microenvironment; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 / Q000172:deficiency / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53
keywords: liver; myofibroblast; progenitor cell; tumor microenvironment