FEBS Letters
Volume 583, Issue 4 , Pages 777-781, 18 February 2009

Inducible expression of Wnt genes during adult hepatic stem/progenitor cell response

Edited by Lukas Huber

Laboratory of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, The University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0032, Japan

Received 24 November 2008; received in revised form 12 January 2009; accepted 16 January 2009. published online 27 January 2009.

Abstract 

In injured livers where hepatocyte growth is severely limited, facultative hepatic stem/progenitor cells, termed oval cells in rodents, are known to emerge and contribute to the regeneration process. Here, we investigated a possible involvement of Wnt signaling during mouse oval cell response and found significant upregulation of several Wnt genes including Wnt7a, Wnt7b, and Wnt10a. Accordingly, increase of β-catenin protein was observed in oval cell compartments. Pharmacological activation of the canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling induced proliferation of cultured hepatic stem/progenitor cell lines. These results together implicate the role of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in adult hepatic stem/progenitor cell response.

Keywords: Liver regeneration, Oval cell, Wnt, β-Catenin

 

PII: S0014-5793(09)00055-6

doi:10.1016/j.febslet.2009.01.022

FEBS Letters
Volume 583, Issue 4 , Pages 777-781, 18 February 2009

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