Transcriptome atlas of aromatic amino acid family metabolism-related genes in eight liver cell types uncovers the corresponding metabolic pathways in rat liver regeneration.

To explore gene expression of aromatic amino acid family metabolism and their metabolic pathways of eight liver cell types in rat liver regeneration, eight kinds of rat regenerating liver cells were isolated by using the combination of percoll density gradient centrifugation and immunomagnetic bead methods. Rat Genome 230 2.0 Array was used to detect the expression changes of genes associated with aromatic amino acid family metabolism. The transcriptome atlas showed that the metabolic pathway of phenylalanine was mainly catalyzed into tyrosine in hepatic stellate cells in the initiation stage, tyrosine was oxidized into dopa and norepinephrine in biliary epithelia cells and dendritic cells, and norepinephrine was finally catalyzed into adrenaline in biliary epithelia cells and pit cells in the progress stage. Thyroid hormone of tyrosine catabolites was synthesized from tyrosine in almost all cells in different stage of LR, among which genes of T3 biosynthesis were increased in HCs, BECs, SECs and DCs in the progress stage. Tryptophan was decarboxylated to 5-hydroxytryptamine in dendritic cells in the progress stage. Based on the results as above, we concluded that phenylalanine is the major source of tyrosine, proliferation of biliary epithelia cells and dendritic cells maybe promote by tyrosine catabolites-dopa and norepinephrine, biliary epithelia cells and pit cells maybe promote by adrenaline. T3 maybe play a major role on proliferation of HCs, BECs, SECs and DCs in the progress stage. The proliferation of dendritic cells maybe promote by tryptophan catabolites-5-hydroxytryptamine.