Expression of transforming growth factor-alpha and its receptor during human liver development and maturation |
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Authors: | T Terada Y Nakanuma T Ohta |
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Institution: | (1) Second Department of Pathology, Kanazawa University School of Medicine, 920 Kanazawa, Japan;(2) Second Department of Surgery, Kanazawa University School of Medicine, 920 Kanazawa, Japan |
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Abstract: | We investigated the expression of transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF- ) and its receptor during human liver development and maturation, using immunohistochemistry. In the fetal liver, strong immunoreactivity for TGF- and its receptor was noted in intrahepatic bile duct cells of various developmental stages; moderate immunoreactivity for TGF- and mild immunoreactivity for TGF- receptor were found in immature hepatocytes. In the postnatal liver, reactivity for TGF- in hepatocytes decreased gradually and was negative or only weakly positive in the adult liver, while reactivity for TGF- receptor in hepatocytes increased gradually and was strongly positive in the adult liver. In contrast, immunoreactivity of TGF- and its receptor in intrahepatic bile duct cells persisted in the postnatal liver and was positive in the adult liver. These data suggest that the system of TGF- and its receptor has an important role in the proliferation and differentiation of intrahepatic biliary cells and hepatocytes in the fetal liver. The decreasing expression of TGF- in hepatocytes in the postnatal liver may indicate that proliferative activity of hepatocytes gradually decreases with liver maturation. The presence of TGF- and its receptor in intrahepatic bile ducts in the postnatal liver suggests that the system of TGF- and TGF- receptor is operative postnatally. |
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Keywords: | Human liver development TGF- " target="_blank">gif" alt="agr" align="BASELINE" BORDER="0"> Intrahepatic bile ducts Hepatocytes |
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