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Publication Information

PubMed ID
Public Release Type
Journal
Publication Year
2011
Affiliation
Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, USA.
Authors
Aoki R, Brondell K, Chu AS, Dorrell C, Erker L, Fox A, Greenbaum LE, Grompe M, Kaestner KH, Schug J, Shin S, Smirnova O, Walton G, Wells RG
Studies
Citation
Shin S, Walton G, Aoki R, Brondell K, Schug J, Fox A, Smirnova O, Dorrell C, Erker L, Chu AS, Wells RG, Grompe M, Greenbaum LE, Kaestner KH. Foxl1-Cre-marked adult hepatic progenitors have clonogenic and bilineage differentiation potential. Genes Dev 2011 Jun 1;25(11):1185-92.

Abstract

Isolation of hepatic progenitor cells is a promising approach for cell replacement therapy of chronic liver disease. The winged helix transcription factor Foxl1 is a marker for progenitor cells and their descendants in the mouse liver in vivo. Here, we purify progenitor cells from Foxl1-Cre; RosaYFP mice and evaluate their proliferative and differentiation potential in vitro. Treatment of Foxl1-Cre; RosaYFP mice with a 3,5-diethoxycarbonyl-1,4-dihydrocollidine diet led to an increase of the percentage of YFP-labeled Foxl1(+) cells. Clonogenic assays demonstrated that up to 3.6% of Foxl1(+) cells had proliferative potential. Foxl1(+) cells differentiated into cholangiocytes and hepatocytes in vitro, depending on the culture condition employed. Microarray analyses indicated that Foxl1(+) cells express stem cell markers such as Prom1 as well as differentiation markers such as Ck19 and Hnf4a. Thus, the Foxl1-Cre; RosaYFP model allows for easy isolation of adult hepatic progenitor cells that can be expanded and differentiated in culture.