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A continuous culture of pluripotent fetal hepatocytes derived from the 8-day epiblast of the pig

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Summary

Continuous cultures of pluripotent parenchymal hepatocytes were derived from the epiblasts of 8-day-old pig blastocysts. The cells were polygonal and had phase-contrast dark, granular cytoplasm with prominent nuclei and nucleoli. These feeder-dependent cell cultures differentiated into large, multicellular, secretory, duct-like structures or formed small canaliculi between individual cells. Alternatively, the cells accumulated droplets that stained intensely with Oil Red O, a lipid-specific stain. Alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), albumin, and β-fibrinogen mRNAs were expressed as the cells differentiated in culture. Serum-free medium that was conditioned by the cells contained transferrin, AFP, and albumin. The growth and viability of the cells were inhibited by transforming growth factor β1 (TGFβ1) at concentrations ≥1 ng/ml. The cell cultures grew slowly with doubling times of 2 to 3 d. One of the cultures, pig inner cell mass-19 (PICM-19), was passaged continuously for over 2 yr [>100 population doublings (PD)] and appears to be an infinitely self-renewing cell population. The stem cell characteristics of the epiblast-derived fetal hepatocytes indicate that the cells may be unique for investigations of liver differentiation and organogenesis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Gene Evaluation and Mapping Laboratory, and Nonruminant Animal Nutrition Laboratory, U.S. Department of Agriculture, USA

    Thomas J. Caperna

  2. Livestock and Poultry Sciences Institute, 20705, Beltsville, Maryland

    Neil C. Talbot, Caird E. Rexroad Jr., Anne M. Powell, Vernon G. Pursel, Sherry L. Ogg & Neil D. Nel (Visiting scientist)

  3. the Irene Animal Production Institute, South Africa

    Neil D. Nel (Visiting scientist)

Authors
  1. Neil C. Talbot
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  2. Caird E. Rexroad Jr.
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  3. Anne M. Powell
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  4. Vernon G. Pursel
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  5. Thomas J. Caperna
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  6. Sherry L. Ogg
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  7. Neil D. Nel
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Talbot, N.C., Rexroad, C.E., Powell, A.M. et al. A continuous culture of pluripotent fetal hepatocytes derived from the 8-day epiblast of the pig. In Vitro Cell Dev Biol - Animal 30, 843–850 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02639394

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02639394

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