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Structural and functional hepatocyte polarity and liver disease

Gissen, P; Arias, IM; (2015) Structural and functional hepatocyte polarity and liver disease. Journal of Hepatology , 63 (4) pp. 1023-1037. 10.1016/j.jhep.2015.06.015. Green open access

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Abstract

Hepatocytes form a crucially important cell layer that separates sinusoidal blood from the canalicular bile. They have a uniquely organized polarity with a basal membrane facing liver sinusoidal endothelial cells, while one or more apical poles can contribute to several bile canaliculi jointly with the directly opposing hepatocytes. Establishment and maintenance of hepatocyte polarity is essential for many functions of hepatocytes and requires carefully orchestrated cooperation between cell adhesion molecules, cell junctions, cytoskeleton, extracellular matrix and intracellular trafficking machinery. The process of hepatocyte polarization requires energy and, if abnormal, may result in severe liver disease.A number of inherited disorders affecting tight junction and intracellular trafficking proteins have been described and demonstrate clinical and pathophysiological features overlapping those of the genetic cholestatic liver diseases caused by defects in canalicular ABC transporters. Thus both structural and functional components contribute to the final hepatocyte polarity phenotype. Many acquired liver diseases target factors that determine hepatocyte polarity, such as junctional proteins. Hepatocyte depolarization frequently occurs but is rarely recognized because hematoxylin-eosin staining does not identify the bile canaliculus. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying these defects are not well understood. Here we aim to provide an update on the key factors determining hepatocyte polarity and how it is affected in inherited and acquired diseases.

Type: Article
Title: Structural and functional hepatocyte polarity and liver disease
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1016/j.jhep.2015.06.015
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jhep.2015.06.015
Language: English
Additional information: © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of the European Association for the Study of the Liver. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Keywords: Canalicular diseases, Cholestasis, Hepatocyte biology, Hepatocyte polarity, Inherited liver diseases
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health > Genetics and Genomic Medicine Dept
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1469523
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