Journal
STEM CELLS
Volume 25, Issue 12, Pages 3058-3068Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1634/stemcells.2007-0291
Keywords
human embryonic stem cells; hepatic differentiation; lentivirus vectors; laser microdissection and pressure catapulting molecular imaging
Categories
Funding
- NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE [R01CA082214] Funding Source: NIH RePORTER
- NATIONAL HEART, LUNG, AND BLOOD INSTITUTE [R01HL078632] Funding Source: NIH RePORTER
- NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF DIABETES AND DIGESTIVE AND KIDNEY DISEASES [R01DK075415, R56DK046952, R01DK046952] Funding Source: NIH RePORTER
- NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON ALCOHOL ABUSE AND ALCOHOLISM [R01AA014173] Funding Source: NIH RePORTER
- NCI NIH HHS [CA082214] Funding Source: Medline
- NHLBI NIH HHS [HL078632] Funding Source: Medline
- NIAAA NIH HHS [AA014173] Funding Source: Medline
- NIDDK NIH HHS [DK075415, DK46952] Funding Source: Medline
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Human embryonic stem cells (hESC) may provide a cell source for functional hepatocytes. The aim of this study is to establish a viable human hepatocyte-like cell line from hESC that can be used for cell-based therapies. The differentiated hESC were enriched by transducing with a lentivirus vector containing the green fluorescent protein (GFP) gene driven by the alpha 1-antitrypsin promoter; the GFP gene is expressed in committed hepatocyte progenitors and hepatocytes. GFP+hESC were purified by laser microdissection and pressure catapulting. In addition, differentiated hESC that were transduced with a lentivirus triple-fusion vector were transplanted into NOD-SCID mice, and the luciferase-induced bioluminescence in the livers was evaluated by a charge-coupled device camera. GFP+hESC expressed a large series of liver-specific genes, and expression levels of these genes were significantly improved by purifying GFP+hESC; our results demonstrated that purified differentiated hESC express nearly physiological levels of liver-specific genes and have liver-specific functions that are comparable to those of primary human hepatocytes. The differentiated hESC survived and engrafted in mouse livers, and human liver-specific mRNA and protein species were detected in the transplanted mouse liver and serum at 3 weeks after transplantation. This is the first time that human albumin generated by hESC-derived hepatocytes was detected in the serum of an animal model. This also represents the first successful transplantation of differentiated hESC in an animal liver and the first bioluminescence imaging of hESC in the liver. This study is an initial step in establishing a viable hepatocyte-like cell line from hESC.
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