Development of transplantable self-regenerative liver tissue consisted of hepatocytes and stem cells

本研究建立了肝细胞片和成纤维细胞片的培养方法。成纤维细胞片可移植到腹腔，并显示出良好的体内适应性。我们发现成纤维细胞片在显微镜下促进了组织修复，并诱导了肝前体细胞卵圆细胞的聚集，我们还没有从成纤维细胞片本身得到肝干细胞的证据，但是，利用受体特异性标记，聚集的细胞来自受体。因此，我们推测成纤维细胞片层通过改善受损的受体环境促进受体干细胞的生长。从技术上讲，它已经实现了，但是，细胞组装仍然是成熟的组织。虽然要达到初步的目的还需要进一步的研究，但成纤维细胞片有望成为促进干细胞的可移植组织工程的候选者。

We established the procedures of cultured hepatocyte sheet and fibroblast sheet in this study. Fibroblast sheet was transplantable to the abdominal cavity and showed excellent adaptation in vivo. We have discovered that fibroblast sheet enhanced tissue repair microscopically and induced accumulation of oval cell, a hepatic progenitor cell.We have not got an evidence of hepatic stem cells from fibroblast sheet itself, however, using recipient specific markers, accumulated cells were originated from recipient. Thus, we speculate that fibroblast sheet promote recipient stem cells thorough the improvement of injured recipient environment.In this study, we also have attempted that coculture system of hepatocyte and fibroblast sheet. Technically, it has been achieved, but, the cellular assembly remained mature tissue. Although further study is needed to obtain initial purposes, fibroblast sheet is expecting candidate for the transplantable tissue engineering which promotes stem cells.