The role of sinusoidal endothelial cells in regulating hepatoblast proliferation and differentiation in developing human

肝衰竭是一种致命的疾病。目前，仅靠肝移植就能恢复正常生活。可悲的是，许多患者在等待新肝脏时死亡。迫切需要新的治疗方法。肝干细胞治疗为治疗肝衰竭提供了新的途径。例如，短期的肝脏支持可以由基于干细胞的设备提供，以类似于肾透析的方式，以允许患者自身肝脏的恢复。这将使那些无法通过任何其他方式治疗的人免于肝移植。对于那些因供体器官姗姗来迟而死于肝功能衰竭的患者，这种装置可以作为肝移植的桥梁。细胞移植，而不是肝移植，也可能提供健康的功能细胞。这可能有利于暴发性肝衰竭，以及代谢性肝病的儿童和成人。窦状内皮细胞（SECs）是肝脏血管内壁的细胞。最近的研究表明，SECs对肝脏发育至关重要。本项目旨在确定SECs对肝细胞成熟的影响以及作用于发育中的肝细胞的正常信号。这些数据将成为人类肝脏疾病干细胞疗法发展的核心。

Liver failure is a fatal disease. Currently, liver transplantation alone allows recovery to normal life. Sadly, many patients die waiting for a new liver. New treatments are urgently required.Liver stem cell therapy offers a new approach in liver failure. For example, short term liver support may be provided by stem-cell based devices, in a manner analogous to kidney dialysis, to allow recovery of the patient‘s own liver. This would spare liver transplantation for those who cannot be treated by any other means. In those patients who die of liver failure because a donor organ comes too late, this device could act as a bridge to liver transplantation. Cell transplant, rather than liver transplant, may also provide healthy functioning cells. This could be of benefit to fulminant liver failure, as well as metabolic liver disease in children and adults.Sinusoidal endothelial cells (SECs) are cells lining the blood vessels in the liver. Recent studies indicate that SECs are critical to liver development. This project aims to determine the effect of SECs on liver cell maturation and the normal signals acting on developing liver cells. These data will be central to the development of stem cell therapies for human liver disease.