Characterization of hepatic progenitors from human fetal liver during second trimester

AIM： To enrich hepatic progenitors using epithelial cell adhesion molecule （EpCAM） as a marker from human fetal liver and investigate the expression of human leukocyte antigen （HLA） and their markers associated with hepatic progenitor cells. METHODS： EpCAM ＋ve cells were isolated using magnetic cell sorting （MACS） from human fetuses （n = 10） at 15-25 wk gestation. Expression of markers for hepatic progenitors such as albumin, alpha-fetoprotein （AFP）, CD29 （integrin ~1）, CD49f （integrin c^6） and CD90 （Thy 1） was studied by using flow cytometry, immunocytochemistry and RT-PCR; HLA class Ⅰ （A, B, C） and class Ⅱ （DR） expression was studied by flow cytometry only. RESULTS： FACS analysis indicated that EpCAM ＋ve cells were positive for CD29, CD49f, CD90, CD34, HLA class I, albumin and AFP but negative for HLA class Ⅱ （DR） and CD45. RT PCR showed that EpCAM ＋ve cells expressed liver epithelial markers （CK18）, biliary specific marker （CK19） and hepatic markers （albumin, AFP）. On immunocytochemical staining, EpCAM ＋ve cells were shown positive signals for CK18 and albumin. CONCLUSION： Our study suggests that these EpCAM ＋ve cells can be used as hepatic progenitors for cell transplantation with a minimum risk of alloreactivity and these cells may serve as a potential source for enrichment of hepatic progenitor.

Ontogeny of expression of transforming growth factor-βand its receptors and their possible relationship with scarless or scar-forming healing in human fetal and postnatal skins

Fetal eutaneous wounds that oeeur in earlygestation heal without sear formation.Althoughmueh work has been done to eharaeterize the roleof transforming growth

Advances in In-vitro Culture Technology of Human Fetal Hepatic Stellate Cells

Liver is an important organ for human metabolism and biological conversion. Medical research on hepatic disease clinic, drug metabolism and drug effi- cacy evaluation all needs an in-vitro model of liver as a research platform. Hepatic stellate cells are core cells for occurrence and development of liver fibrosis. Stud- ies at home and abroad deemed that human fetal hepatic stellate cells are an ideal material for the construction of an in-vitro research model for liver fibrosis. With clinical and basic research of liver going deeper, the requirements to quantity and quality of in-vitro models of fetal hepatic stellate cells become higher and higher. The advances in isolation, culture and cryopreservation technique of human fetal hepatic stellate cells were reviewed in this paper.

ISOBUTYRAMIDE ACTIVATES TRANSCRIPTION OF HUMAN FETAL γ-AND MURINE EMBRYONIC εy-GLOBIN GENES

Objective. To examine the effect of isobutyramide synthesized in our laboratory on human and murine globin gene expression and to test cell toxicity ofthe drug.Methods. MEL cells were transfected with the recombinant construct μLCRAγψβδβand the stable transformants were cultured in the medium with different concentrations of isobutyramide. The experimental mice and rabbit were injected with different doses of isobutyramide. The globin mRNAs were analyzed by RNase protection assay. The hematological toxicity and electrolyte toxicity ofthe drug were tested.Results. An inducible and dose dependent expression of the human γ , β and mouse α globin gene was observed in the transfected MEL cells. The induction of the human γ globin gene is significant stronger than that of the β globin gene. With 2.5～5 mmol/L isobutyramide, the induction of the human γ globin gene is even more effective than that of mouse α globin gene. After a 15 day injection under the doses of 500～900mg·kg-1·d-1, the level of the mouse embryonic εy globin mRNA could be significantly induced up to 3～4 fold of that of uninjected controls. The changes of hemoglobin(Hb), RBC, hematocrit(HCT), WBC, derived from mice injected with different doses of isobutyramide at the interval of 24 hours for 2～4 weeks, were generally within the normal range. In rabbits injected with isobutyramide in the same regiment for 2 weeks, the concentration of blood K+, Na+, Cl-and CO2 were all within normal range and serum ionic osmotic pressure remained stable as well. Conclusion. Our results suggested that isobutyramide is a weak inducer ofcell differentiation, but it can selectively activate transcription of human γ globin gene at a certain degree, and it can act on early stages of erythroid progenitor differentiation in adult mice and activate transcription of embryonic εy-globin gene and have no hematological toxicity. Our results have further proved the potential value of isobutyramide in treatment of β-thalassemia and sickle cell disease.

EFFECTS OF SALVIA MILTIORRHIZA BUNGE(SMB)ON LIPID PEROXIDATION AND PLASMA MEMBRANE FLUIDITY OF CULTURED HUMAN FETAL HEPATOCYTES INJURED BY CARBON TETRACHLORIDE

In order to investigate the effect of salvia miltiorrhiza hunge(SMB)on the plasma membrane fluidity and the relationship between the lipid peroxidation and the Plasma membrane fluidityin cultured human fetdal hepatocytes,the plasma membrane fluidity,using 1,6-dipheny-1,3,5-hexatriene(DPH)as a fluorescence probe, malondialdehyde(MDA)production as well as alanine aminotransferase(ALT)release of human fetal hepatocytes cultured in Presence of carbon tetrachloride(CCl4)or SMB puls CCl4 were estimated. In the cultured hepatocytes injured by CCl4,significant increments of the MDA production and the ALT release,and significant decrease in the plasma membrane fluidity were observed.when the culture medium was supplied with SMB prior to the additionof CCl4,the CCl4 induced increments in MDA production and ALT release was suppressed signifi cantly and a concomitant raise of plasma membrane fluidity towards normal occurred.The resultssuggested that SMB could suppress the lipid peroxidation in bepatocytes,thereby normal membranefluidity might be retained.

Cell-based therapy in Alzheimer's disease: can human fetal cholinergic neurons “untangle the skein”?

Alzheimer＇s disease（AD）is a devastating neurodegenerative disorder and the most common form of old-age dementia.The disease is characterized by a progressive decline in cognitive functions,gradual loss of memory and ability to perform everyday activities,and leads to inevitable death within 3 to 9 years atter diagnosis.

RESPONSES OF HUMAN FETAL SPLENOCYTES AND THYMOCYTES TO INTERLEUKIN-2: LAK ACTIVITY AND PROLIFERATION

Using cytotoxicity and thymidine uptake assays, we investigated the effects of human recombinant in-terleukin-2 (rIL-2) on the induction of lympholine-activated killer (LAK) activity and cellular proliferation in splenocytes and thymocytes from human fetuses (18-22 weeks). We observed that fetal splenocytes and thymocytes incubated with low doses of rIL-2 (10-100 U ml) developed broad antitumor activity (LAK activity) although the kinetics and magnitudes of the responses were different. It indicated the LAK precursors are present in fetal spleen and thymus. Further, rIL-2 induced a strong proliferative response in splenocytes, but not in thymocytes. On the basis of the findings, we conclude that the responses of fetal splenocytes and thymocytes to IL-2 are different.

REGULATORY EFFECTS OF HUMAN RECOMBINANT IL-6 ON NATURAL KILLER CELL ACTIVITY OF HUMAN FETAL SPLEENS

In the present study it was proved first that human recombinant interleukin-6(HrIL-6) significantly augmented natural killer(NK) cell activity derived from human fetal spleens against K562 target cells in a 4 hours 51Cr release assay. The enhancement of NK activity with 24 hours preincubation in HrlL-6 was dose-dependent, and significantly higher than that of fresh NK cells and controls cultured with RPMI-1640 medium alone (P<0.001). We also found that IL-6 was able to augment NK activity from different fetal spleens at 20 to 40 weeks of gestation (up to 2.24 to 2.78 times), and no difference of NK activity of fetal splenocytes treated by HrIL-6 was observed between different fetal age (32.3% to 45.4%, P>0.05). Furthermore, IL-6-augmented NK activity of fetal splenocytes was very similar to adult levels (P>0.05). These finding strongly indicated that IL-6 plays an important role in the development of NK cell function during the gestational period, suggesting that IL-6 may be of importance in the regulation of host defense mechanisms against malignancies and viral diseases.

HEXOKINASE, GLUCOSE-6-PHOSPHATASE DEHYDROGENASE AND ALEOSE REDUCTASE IN HUMAN FETAL LENSES

The lens HK, G6PD, AR activity and its relationship with fetal age was determined.There is a positive correlation between the age of fetus and the activity(IU/mg pro.) of HK and G6PD(r=0.8069, 0.8204, P<0.01) and a negetive correlation between the age of fetus and activity of AR(r=-0.810 1,0.05>P>0.01).

Studies on Human Fetal Lens Crystallins Under Oxidative Stress and Protective Effects of Tea Polyphenols

Purpose: To investigate the oxidative modification of water-soluble crystallins of human fetal lens with H2O2 and fourteen metal ions with or without EDTA. Tea-polyphenols (TP) was added to above solutions in order to testing their antioxidative abilities. Methods: The experiments were performed at 37℃ with final concentration of 2.5mg/ml protein, 0.1 mM metal ions, 0.3 mM EDTA and 1.0 mM H2O2. Then the TP was added to the solution with CuSO4 and H2O2, after 5 or 24 hours, the crystallins were analysed with SDS-PAGE and IEF.Results : There were marked oxidative modifications of lens protein in H2O2 and copper without EDTA. In SDS-PAGE patterns, we found an increase in those species above of bands higher than 30 kD and some diffuse bands from 30 to 17 kD after 5 hours. In IEF patterns, there were a general increase on acidity with loss of the more basic species. When the TP was added, there was not any difference with control group.Conclusion: The results indicate that exposure of water-soluble

THE DIELECTRIC PROPERTIES OF HUMAN FETAL ORGAN TISSUES AT RADIO AND MICROWAVE FREQUENCISE

ＴＨＥＤＩＥＬＥＣＴＲＩＣＰＲＯＰＥＲＴＩＥＳＯＦＨＵＭＡＮＦＥＴＡＬＯＲＧＡＮＴＩＳＳＵＥＳＡＴＲＡＤＩＯＡＮＤＭＩＣＲＯＷＡＶＥＦＲＥＱＵＥＮＣＩＳＥＴＨＥＤＩＥＬＥＣＴＲＩＣＰＲＯＰＥＲＴＩＥＳＯＦＨＵＭＡＮＦＥＴＡＬＯＲＧＡＮＴＩＳＳＵＥＳＡ...

Androgen receptors are expressed in a variety of human fetal extragenital tissues： an immunohistochemical study

Aim： To investigate the expression of androgen receptors in the extragenital tissues of developing human embryo. Methods： Using immunohistochemistry, we investigated the distribution of androgen receptor （AR） in the extragenital tissues of paraffin-embedded tissue sections of first trimester （8-12 weeks gestation） human embryos. Gender was determined by polymerized chain reaction. Results： There were no differences in the expression and distribution of AR in male and female embryos at any stage of gestation. AR expression was seen in the thymus gland. The bronchial epithelium of the lungs showed intense positive staining with surrounding stroma negative. Furthermore, positive staining for androgen receptor was exhibited in the spinal cord with a few positive cells in the surrounding tissues. Cardiac valves also showed strong positive staining but with faint reactivity of the surrounding cardiac muscle. There was no staining in kidney, adrenal, liver or bowel. Conclusion： This study demonstrates that immunoreactive AR protein is present in a wide variety of human first trimester fetal tissues and shows the potential for androgen affecting tissues, which are mostly not considered to be androgen dependent. Moreover, it implies that androgen might act as atrophic factor and affect the early development of these organs rather than simply sexual differentiation.

Comprehensive Characterization and Global Transcriptome Analysis of Human Fetal Liver Terminal Erythropoiesis

The fetal liver(FL)is the key erythropoietic organ during fetal development,but knowledge on human FL erythropoiesis is very limited.In this study,we sorted primary erythroblasts from FL cells and performed RNA sequencing(RNA-seq)analyses.We found that temporal gene expression patterns reflected changes in function during primary human FL terminal erythropoiesis.Notably,the expression of genes enriched in proteolysis and autophagy was up-regulated in orthochromatic erythroblasts(OrthoEs),suggesting the involvement of these pathways in enucleation.We also performed RNA-seq of in vitro cultured erythroblasts derived from FL CD34+cells.Comparison of transcriptomes between the primary and cultured erythroblasts revealed significant differences,indicating impacts of the culture system on gene expression.Notably,the expression of lipid metabolism-related genes was increased in cultured erythroblasts.We further immortalized erythroid cell lines from FL and cord blood(CB)CD34+cells(FL-iEry and CB-iEry,respectively).FL-iEry and CB-iEry were immortalized at the proerythroblast stage and can be induced to differentiate into OrthoEs,but their enucleation ability was very low.Comparison of the transcriptomes between OrthoEs with and without enucleation capability revealed the down-regulation of pathways involved in chromatin organization and mitophagy in OrthoEs without enucleation capacity,indicating that defects in chromatin organization and mitophagy contribute to the inability of OrthoEs to enucleate.Additionally,the expression of HBE1,HBZ,and HBG2 was up-regulated in FL-iEry compared with CB-iEry,and such up-regulation was accompanied by down-regulated expression of BCL11A and up-regulated expression of LIN28B and IGF2BP1.Our study provides new insights into human FL erythropoiesis and rich resources for future studies.

An Eperimental Study on the Transplantation of Human Fetal Brain Cells into Monkey Models of Parkinson's Disease.

Unilateral administration of methly-phenyl-tetrahydropyridine(MPTP) into the common carotid artery

ULTRASTRUCTURAL STUDY OF THE HEMOPOIETIC MICROENVIRONMENT IN HUMAN FETAL SPLEEN

Reciprocal interactions between hemopoietic stromal cells and immature hemopoietic cells in human spleens obtained from 20 fetuses of 10-28 weeks gestation were observed by transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The close association of stromal cells with immature hemopoietic cells was confirmed under the electron microscope and a presumptive HIM (Hemopoietic inductive microenvironment) was visualized. In regions of immature hemopoietic cell-reticular cell, endothelial cell, macrophage and interdigitating cell contact,some communicating structures were found between the plasma membranes of adjacent cells; moreover, the cytoplasm of these four stromal cells were full of various kinds of organelles. These results suggest that reticular cells,endothelial cells, macrophages and interdigitating cells are component parts of the HIM of human fetal spleen and that these cells have a nurturing function in relation to hemopoietic cells.

Investigation on Hepatopoietin and Other Novel Genes from Human Fetal Liver

The aim of this study is to discover the molecular mechanism of the 22-week gestated human fetal liver (HFL) which rarely displays both hematopoietic and hepatic functions.Based on large-scale cDNA library sequencing and bioinformatic analysis,the largest gene expression profile of human fetal liver in the world was successfully established.A set of gene clusters func- tionally related to the liver development,hepatocarci- nogenesis and hematopoiesis have been identified.This is for the first time that we could panoramically under- stand the molecular mechanism of the dual functions of human fetal liver.Moreover,201 unrecorded human homologous genes and 609 novel genes have been iden- tified and annotated,which accounting for more than 7% of the known human genes in 2001.In the recent human genome annotation map (human genome build 35. 1 ), 45 genes were nominated based on this study. In addition, we have characterized a set of gene fami- lies represented by hepatopoietin (HPO), Semaphorin, LSECtin and ARFGAP.Two distinctive novel pathways, 'extracellular HPO→HPOreceptor→EGF receptor→Raf→MEK→MAPK' for autocrine and 'intracellular HPO→JAB1→c-JUN(AP-1)' for intracrine of HPO, an unusual cytokine functioned in the regeneration of liver, has been reported for the first time, which have shed new lights on the study of the signal transduction of the entire HPO family.We have also demonstrated that HPO could act as a FAD thioloxidase and that only its intracrine pathway is dependent on the enzymatic activi- ty. It is also known for the first time that the enzyme activity is critically important for the cytokine HPO.Re- garding the regulation of the gene expression of HPO,it was demonstrated that HPO promoter includes a nega- tive regulatory element and a core promoter (comprises an initiator and its flanking three tandem IFE elements). Furthermore,two novel members of Semaphorin family, SEMA6C and SEMA6D,were cloned and shown to be able to determine the orientation of the cell growth.We have also discovered and characterized a novel lectin family including LSECtin, CD23,DC-SIGN and DC- SIGNR.The function of LSECtin was also defined to be important in adhesion of the cells.In addition,the first human member of ARFGAP family was cloned and shown to regulate protein secretion.The publications based on this study have been cited for 145 times by SCl journals before 2005.This study has provided im- portant original data for the annotation of human genome and establishment of human transcriptome.It also played an important role in Chinese national achievement of cloning and annotation of the 10% human cDNAs pro- ject and set up the corner-stone for the leading role of China in the international 'Human Liver Proteome Pro- ject'.

Renewal and preliminary study of expressed sequence tags database on human fetal liver aged 22 wk of gestation

With the developments of international human transcriptome data and our ESTs of human fetal liver aged 22 weeks (wk) of gestation (HFL22w), the former research must be renewed. In this work, the EST data were firstly clustered by blasting against the ESTs of HFL22w, UniGene, DoTS, MGC and Twinscan-predicted human transcriptome. Then, after EST assembly and gene identification, the known genes were classified by GO (gene ontology), and the unknown genes were predicted by Pfam and ScanProsite to clarify their functions. In the end, the relations of 5 tissues including fetal liver, adult liver, bone marrow, thymus and lymph node that possess hemopoiesis or can indicate fetal liver characteristics were analyzed by hierarchical clustering. The results show that: (i) By comparing the 5 newest human transcriptome databases, we can largely reduce the probability that the ESTs belonging to unconnected parts of one gene were probably divided into different clusters, so it is recommended to blast against the newest databases when clustering EST data; (ii) some previous unknown ESTs had been identified as function-known genes, and 1379 genes were identified as fully new sequences possessed in our lab; (iii) through GO classification, we got a rough understanding of HFL22w, and obtained 6 cell migration genes and 6 hemopoiesis genes; (iv) prediction of gene function had enabled us to obtain 277 profiles, among them, there are 5 categories distributed in more than 10 genes; (v) five tissue relations analyzed by hierarchical clustering are related to their functions; (vi) We have built the world's largest EST database on HFL22w. Renewal and preliminary analysis of EST database on HFL22w will help to understand hemopoiesis and cell migration mechanism, and promote future research on human fetal liver.

人胎儿真皮间充质干细胞对人恶性黑色素瘤细胞增殖、迁移、侵袭的抑制作用观察

目的 观察人胎儿真皮间充质干细胞(FDMSCs)对人恶性黑色素瘤细胞(A375细胞)增殖、迁移、侵袭的抑制作用。方法 通过酶消化法从16~20孕周的人意外流产健康胎儿的背部皮肤中提取FDMSCs,并进行鉴定。选取A375细胞并分为3组,F-CM组加入FDMSCs条件培养基,A-CM组加入成人真皮成纤维细胞条件培养基,Control组加入DMEM低糖空白培养基,利用CCK-8细胞增殖实验、划痕细胞迁移实验、细胞侵袭实验测算各组细胞相对活力、细胞迁移率、侵袭细胞数。结果 FDMSCs可以从人胎儿皮肤中成功提取并体外培养,阳性表达间充质干细胞(MSCs)特异性标记CD44、CD90、CD105及胚胎组织特异性标记SSEA-4、OCT-4,且具备成脂、成骨、成软骨的多向分化能力。与Control组比较,F-CM组细胞相对活力下降,细胞迁移率低,侵袭细胞数少(P均<0.05)。结论 FDMSCs可抑制A375细胞的增殖、迁移和侵袭。

Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Derived from Human Embryonic Stem Cells, Fetal Limb and Bone Marrow Share a Common Phenotype but Are Transcriptionally and Biologically Different

Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) can be obtained from several sources and the significant differences in their properties make it crucial to investigate the differentiation potential of MSCs from different sources to determine the optimal source of MSCs. We investigated if this biological heterogeneity in MSCs from different sources results in different mechanisms for their differentiation. In this study, we compared the gene expression patterns of phenotypically defined MSCs derived from three ontogenically different sources: Embryonic stem cells (hES-MSCs), Fetal limb (Flb-MSCs) and Bone Marrow (BM-MSCs). Differentially expressed genes between differentiated cells and undifferentiated controls were compared across the three MSC sources. We found minimal overlap (5% - 16%) in differentially expressed gene sets among the three sources. Flb-MSCs were similar to BM-MSCs based on differential gene expression patterns. Pathway analysis of the differentially expressed genes using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) revealed a large variation in the canonical pathways leading to MSC differentiation. The similar canonical pathways among the three sources were lineage specific. The Flb-MSCs showed maximum overlap of canonical pathways with the BM-MSCs, indicating that the Flb-MSCs are an intermediate source between the less specialised hES-MSC source and the more specialised BM-MSC source. The source specific pathways prove that MSCs from the three ontogenically different sources use different biological pathways to obtain similar differentiation outcomes. Thus our study advocates the understanding of biological pathways to obtain optimal sources of MSCs for various clinical applications.

孕中期胎盘功能监测指标的临床研究

目的探讨孕中期胎盘功能监测指标的临床效果。方法选取2021年1月至2023年12月南昌市第一医院诊断为胎儿生长受限(FGR)的60例孕妇设为观察组,正常孕妇60例设为对照组,比较两组胎盘血流学参数[血管指数(VI)、血流指数(FI)和血管血流综合指数(VFI)]、胎盘形态学参数[胎盘体积(PV)]以及外周血胎盘激素[人绒毛膜促性腺激素(hCG)、游离雌三醇(uE3)]等指标差异,分析绘制受试者工作特征(ROC)曲线,分析VI、VFI、FI、PV、hCG、uE3预测FGR价值。结果观察组VI为(15.47±2.39)、VFI为(4.14±0.72)、FI为(21.21±2.31)、PV为(35.51±3.42)cm3,均低于对照组,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05);观察组hCG检测值高于对照组,而uE3检测值低于对照组,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05);VI、VFI、FI、PV、hCG、uE3联合检测预测FGR的曲线下面积(AUC)为0.923,灵敏度为0.917,特异度为0.837,均高于单一检测。结论孕中期胎盘功能监测指标与FGR发生关系密切,各指标联合检测可有效预测FGR发生。