Toxicology of ZnO and TiO2 nanoparticles on hepatocytes: impact on metabolism and bioenergetics.

Background And Aim: Zinc oxide (ZnO) and titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanomaterials (NMs) are used in many consumer products, including foodstuffs. Ingested and inhaled NM can reach the liver. Whilst their effects on inflammation, cytotoxicity, genotoxicity and mitochondrial function have been explored, no work has been reported on their impact on liver intermediary metabolism.

Oxidative stress rather than triglyceride accumulation is a determinant of mitochondrial dysfunction in in vitro models of hepatic cellular steatosis.

Background/aims: There is still debate about the relationship between fat accumulation and mitochondrial function in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. It is a critical question as only a small proportion of individuals with steatosis progress to steatohepatitis. In this study, we focused on defining (i) the effects of triglyceride accumulation and reactive oxygen species (ROS) on mitochondrial function (ii) the contributions of triglyceride, ROS and subsequent mitochondrial impairment on the metabolism of energy substrates.

Persistence of functional hepatocyte-like cells in immune-compromised mice.

Background: Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) can be efficiently differentiated to hepatocyte-like cells (HLCs) in vitro and demonstrate many of the functions and gene expression found in the adult liver.

Aims: In this study, we assess the therapeutic value of HLCs in long-term cell-based therapies in vivo.

Methods: hESC-derived HLCs were injected into the spleen of acutely injured NODscid(IL-2Rγ) null mice and analysed at various time points post-transplantation up to 3 months.

The comparison between conditioned media and serum-free media in human embryonic stem cell culture and differentiation.

Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) offer an inexhaustible supply of human somatic cell types through their ability to self-renew while retaining pluripotency. As such, hESC-derived cell types are important for applications ranging from in vitro modeling to therapeutic use. However, for their full potential to be realized, both the growth of the undifferentiated cells and their derivatives must be performed in defined culture conditions.

Bone marrow stem cells contribute to alcohol liver fibrosis in humans.

Bone marrow-derived stem cell (BMSC) contribution to liver repair varies considerably and recent evidence suggests these cells may contribute to liver fibrosis. We investigated the mobilization and hepatic recruitment of bone marrow (BM) stem cells in patients with alcohol liver injury and their contribution to parenchymal/non-parenchymal liver cell lineages. Liver biopsies from alcoholic hepatitis (AH) patients and male patients, who received a female liver transplant and developed AH, were analyzed for BM stem cell content by fluorescence in situ hybridization and immunostaining.