Search results for "Stellate cell"
showing 10 items of 106 documents
Dendritic cells in liver injury and fibrosis: shortcomings and promises.
2013
SummaryThe phenotype and function of liver dendritic cells (LDCs) are poorly understood. This Snapshot summarizes our current knowledge on LDCs in the healthy and injured liver, and their role in fibrosis progression and reversal. It also draws attention to various pitfalls in the current experimental design and conclusions based on available data.
Fibronectin Type III Domain–Containing Protein 5 rs3480 A>G Polymorphism, Irisin, and Liver Fibrosis in Patients With Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Dis…
2017
Context Contrasting data have been reported on the role of irisin, a novel myokine encoded by the fibronectin type III domain-containing protein 5 (FNDC5) gene, in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) pathogenesis. We tested in patients with suspected nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) the association of FNDC5 variants, hepatic expression, and circulating irisin with liver damage (F2 to F4 fibrosis as main outcome). We also investigated whether irisin modulates hepatocellular fat accumulation and stellate cell activation in experimental models. Methods We considered 593 consecutive patients who underwent liver biopsy for suspected NASH and 192 patients with normal liver enzymes and wit…
MERTK rs4374383 polymorphism affects the severity of fibrosis in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
2015
Background & Aim Homozygosity for a common non-coding rs4374383 G>A polymorphism in MERTK (myeloid-epithelial-reproductive tyrosine kinase) has been associated with the protection against fibrosis progression in chronic hepatitis C. The main study objective was to assess whether MERTK AA genotype influences liver fibrosis, and secondarily MERTK expression in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). We also investigated whether MERTK is expressed in human hepatic stellate cells (HSC) and in murine models of fibrogenesis. Methods We considered 533 consecutive patients who underwent liver biopsy for suspected non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) without severe obesity from two …
GDF11 induces mild hepatic fibrosis independent of metabolic health
2020
BACKGROUND & AIMS: Growth Differentiation Factor 11 (GDF11) is an anti-aging factor, yet its role in liver diseases is not established. We evaluated the role of GDF11 in healthy conditions and in the transition from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). RESULTS: GDF11 mRNA levels positively correlated with NAFLD activity score and with CPT1, SREBP, PPAR? and Col1A1 mRNA levels, and associated to portal fibrosis, in morbidly obese patients with NAFLD/NASH. GDF11-treated mice showed mildly exacerbated hepatic collagen deposition, accompanied by weight loss and without changes in liver steatosis or inflammation. GDF11 triggered ALK5-dependent SMAD2/…
Coagulation and fibrosis in chronic liver disease.
2008
In the hepatic tissue repair mechanism, hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) are recruited at the site of injury and their changes reflect paracrine stimulation by all neighbouring cell types, including sinusoidal endothelial cells, Kupffer cells, hepatocytes, platelets and leucocytes. Thrombin converts circulating fibrinogen to fibrin, promotes platelet aggregation, is a potent activator of endothelial cells, acts as a chemoattractant for inflammatory cells and is a mitogen and chemoattractant for fibroblasts and vascular smooth muscle cells. Most of the cellular effects elicited by thrombin are mediated via a family of widely expressed G-protein-coupled receptors termed protease activated recept…
Increased hepatic fibrosis and JNK2-dependent liver injury in mice exhibiting hepatocyte-specific deletion of cFLIP.
2012
Chronic liver disease promotes hepatocellular injury involving apoptosis and triggers compensatory regeneration that leads to the activation of quiescent stellate cells in the liver. The deposition of extracellular matrix from activated myofibroblasts promotes hepatic fibrosis and the progression to cirrhosis with deleterious effects on liver physiology. The role of apoptosis signaling pathways in the development of fibrosis remains undefined. The aim of the current study was to determine the involvement of the caspase-8 homologue cellular FLICE-inhibitory protein (cFLIP) during the initiation and progression of fibrosis. Liver injury and fibrosis from carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) and thioa…
Hepatocyte-Specific Smad7 Expression Attenuates TGF-β–Mediated Fibrogenesis and Protects Against Liver Damage
2008
Background & Aims The profibrogenic role of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β in liver has mostly been attributed to hepatic stellate cell activation and excess matrix synthesis. Hepatocytes are believed to contribute to increased rates of apoptosis. Methods Primary hepatocyte outgrowths and AML12 cells were used as an in vitro model to detect TGF-β effects on the cellular phenotype and expression profile. Furthermore, a transgenic mouse model was used to determine the outcome of hepatocyte-specific Smad7 expression on fibrogenesis following CCl 4 -dependent damage. Samples from patients with chronic liver diseases were assessed for (partial) epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in h…
StellaTUM: current consensus and discussion on pancreatic stellate cell research
2011
The field of pancreatic stellate cell (PSC) biology is very young, as the essential in-vitro tools to study these cells (ie, methods to isolate and culture PSC) were only developed as recently as in 1998. Nonetheless, there has been an exponential increase in research output in this field over the past decade, with numerous research groups around the world focusing their energies into elucidating the biology and function of these cells. It is now well established that PSC are responsible for producing the stromal reaction (fibrosis) of two major diseases of the pancreas—chronic pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer. Despite exponentially increasing data, the methods for studying PSC remain var…
Evolving therapies for liver fibrosis
2013
Fibrosis is an intrinsic response to chronic injury, maintaining organ integrity when extensive necrosis or apoptosis occurs. With protracted damage, fibrosis can progress toward excessive scarring and organ failure, as in liver cirrhosis. To date, antifibrotic treatment of fibrosis represents an unconquered area for drug development, with enormous potential but also high risks. Preclinical research has yielded numerous targets for antifibrotic agents, some of which have entered early-phase clinical studies, but progress has been hampered due to the relative lack of sensitive and specific biomarkers to measure fibrosis progression or reversal. Here we focus on antifibrotic approaches for li…
Human amniotic stem cells improve hepatic microvascular dysfunction and portal hypertension in cirrhotic rats
2020
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Portal hypertension is the main consequence of cirrhosis, responsible for the complications defining clinical decompensation. The only cure for decompensated cirrhosis is liver transplantation, but it is a limited resource and opens the possibility of regenerative therapy. We investigated the potential of primary human amniotic membrane-derived mesenchymal stromal (hAMSCs) and epithelial (hAECs) stem cells for the treatment of portal hypertension and decompensated cirrhosis. METHODS In vitro: Primary liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) and hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) from cirrhotic rats (chronic CCl4 inhalation) were co-cultured with hAMSCs, hAECs or vehicle for…