• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.85-96
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• 1993

To investigate the alteration of transferrin receptor (TfR) in the proliferating or transformed liver cells, $^{125}I-transferrin$ binding experiment was carried out in the isolated parenchymal cells (PC) or nonparenchymal cells (NPC) from normal regenerated rat liver after partial hepatectomy and from the liver of 3-methyl-4-dimethyl-aminoazobenzene (3-Me-DAB) treated rat. With the administration of 3-Me-DAB for 8 weeks, the liver tissue showed marked morphologic changes of oval cell proliferation, regenerations of hepatocytes, and atypical proliferations of bile ducts, but these changes were little affected by partial hepatectomy. Transferrin binding values in PC or NPC homogenate from the regenerated liver of normal rat, were increased by 3rd day and diminished to control level at 7th day after partial hepatectomy. With the treatement of 3-Me-DAB for 8 weeks, transferrin binding sites in homogenates were higher than those of normal rat liver and increased by 7th day after partial hepatectomy. Transferrin binding sites (Bmax) in the cell membrane of NPC were higher than those of PC of normal rat liver, but there was no significant difference in Kd values between both groups (5.05, 6.3 nM). In the normal resenerated rat liver, transferrin binding sites in the PC or NPC plasma membrane, were increased by 3rd day and diminished to control level at 7th day after partial hepatectomy. With 3-Me-DAB tratment, transferrin binding sites in both liver NPC and PC plasma membrane were increased about 3 folds, compared to those in each plasma membrane of normal rat liver. And after partial hepatectomy of 3-Me-DAB trated rat, transferrin binding sites were increased by the 3rd day in the NPC plasma membrane but increased by the 7th day in the PC plasma membrane. In the transferrin binding sites of the PC or NPC plasma membrane of 3-Me-DAB treated liver, two kinds of Kd values $(3.1{\sim}4.7\;nM,\;25.4{\sim}54.1\;nM)$ were detected. The present results suggest that 1) TfRs are distributed in the liver PC as well as NPC; 2) Increased TfRs in PC or NPC plasma membrane of normal regenerated liver after partial hepatectomy and 3-Me-DAB treated rat liver, may be due to increased intracellular synthesis; 3) Increased TfRs in normal regenerated liver after partial hepatectomy might be related to the expression of a single type of high affinity site $(Kd,\;3.1{\sim}7.5\;nM)$, but in 3-Me-DAB treated rat liver might be related to the expression of high and low affinity types of receptors $(Kd,\;25.4{\sim}54.1\;nm)$.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.253-263
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• 2023

The biogenesis and biological roles of extracellular vesicles (EVs) in the progression of liver diseases have attracted considerable attention in recent years. EVs are membrane-bound nanosized vesicles found in different types of body fluids and contain various bioactive materials, including proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, and mitochondrial DNA. Based on their origin and biogenesis, EVs can be classified as apoptotic bodies, microvesicles, and exosomes. Among these, exosomes are the smallest EVs (30-150 nm in diameter), which play a significant role in cell-to-cell communication and epigenetic regulation. Moreover, exosomal content analysis can reveal the functional state of the parental cell. Therefore, exosomes can be applied to various purposes, including disease diagnosis and treatment, drug delivery, cell-free vaccines, and regenerative medicine. However, exosome-related research faces two major limitations: isolation of exosomes with high yield and purity and distinction of exosomes from other EVs (especially microvesicles). No standardized exosome isolation method has been established to date; however, various exosome isolation strategies have been proposed to investigate their biological roles. Exosome-mediated intercellular communications are known to be involved in alcoholic liver disease and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease development. Damaged hepatocytes or nonparenchymal cells release large numbers of exosomes that promote the progression of inflammation and fibrogenesis through interactions with neighboring cells. Exosomes are expected to provide insight on the progression of liver disease. Here, we review the biogenesis of exosomes, exosome isolation techniques, and biological roles of exosomes in alcoholic liver disease and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.73-80
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• 2010

Liver regeneration is a result of highly coordinated proliferation of hepatocytes and nonparenchymal liver cells. Partial hepatectomy (PH) is the most often used stimulus to study liver regeneration because, compared with other methods that use hepatic toxins, it is not associated with the tissue injury and inflammation, and the initiation of the regenerative stimulus is precisely defined. Granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), which is a cytokine able to regulate the proliferation and differentiation of epithelial cells, was first identified as the most potent mitogen for bone marrow. Particularly, rrhGM-CSF, which is highly glycosylated and sustained longer than any other types of GM-CSF in the blood circulation, was specifically produced from rice cell culture. In this experiment, effects of rrhGM-CSF administration were evaluated in the regenerating liver after 78% PH of rats. Morphological changes induced by PH were characterized by destroyed hepatocyte plate around the central vein and enlarged nuclear cytoplasmic ratio and increased hepatocytes with two nuclei. And then, proliferation of liver cells (parenchymal and nonparenchymal) and rearrangement of plates and lobules seemed to be carried out during liver regeneration. These alterations in the experimental group preceded those of the control. Since proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) is known to be a nuclear protein maximally elevated in the S phase of proliferating cells, the protein was used as a marker of liver regeneration after PH in rats. PCNA levels by western blot analysis and immunohistology were compared between the two groups. PCNA protein expression of two groups at 12 hr and 24 hr after injury showed similar pattern. The protein expression showed the peak at 3 days in both groups, however, the protein level of the experimental group was higher than that of the control. On immunohistochemical observations, the reaction product of PCNA was localized at the nuclei of proliferating cells and the positive reaction in experimental group at 3 days was clearly stronger than that in control group. The results by Western blotting and immunohistology for PCNA showed similar pattern in terms of the protein levels. In conclusion, rrhGM-CSF administration during liver regeneration after 78% PH accelerated breakdown and restoration of the hepatic plate and expression of PCNA. These results suggest that rrhGM-CSF might play an important role during liver regeneration in rats.