Transgenic expression of FGF8 and FGF10 induces transdifferentiation of pancreatic islet cells into hepatocytes and exocrine cells

Deciphering role of FGFR signalling pathway in pancreatic cancer

Recently, fibroblast growth factors are identified to play a vital role in the development and progression of human pancreatic cancer. FGF pathway is critical involved in numerous cellular processes through regulation of its downstream targets, including proliferation, apoptosis, migration, invasion, angiogenesis and metastasis. In this review article, we describe recent advances of FGFR signalling pathway in pancreatic carcinogenesis and progression. Moreover, we highlight the available chemical inhibitors of FGFR pathway for potential treatment of pancreatic cancer. Furthermore, we discuss whether targeting FGFR pathway is a novel therapeutic strategy for pancreatic cancer clinical management.

Use of additives, scaffolds and extracellular matrix components for improvement of human pancreatic islet outcomes in vitro: A systematic review

Pancreatic islet transplantation is an established treatment to restore insulin independence in type 1 diabetic patients. Its success rates have increased lately based on improvements in immunosuppressive therapies and on islet isolation and culture. It is known that the quality and quantity of viable transplanted islets are crucial for the achievement of insulin independence and some studies have shown that a significant number of islets are lost during culture time. Thus, in an effort to improve islet yield during culture period, researchers have tested a variety of additives in culture media as well as alternative culture devices, such as scaffolds. However, due to the use of different categories of additives or devices, it is difficult to draw a conclusion on the benefits of these strategies. Therefore, the aim of this systematic review was to summarize the results of studies that described the use of medium additives, scaffolds or extracellular matrix (ECM) components during human pancreatic islets culture. PubMed and Embase repositories were searched. Of 5083 articles retrieved, a total of 37 articles fulfilled the eligibility criteria and were included in the review. After data extraction, articles were grouped as follows: 1) "antiapoptotic/anti-inflammatory/antioxidant," 2) "hormone," 3) "sulphonylureas," 4) "serum supplements," and 5) "scaffolds or ECM components." The effects of the reviewed additives, ECM or scaffolds on islet viability, apoptosis and function (glucose-stimulated insulin secretion - GSIS) were heterogeneous, making any major conclusion hard to sustain. Overall, some "antiapoptotic/anti-inflammatory/antioxidant" additives decreased apoptosis and improved GSIS. Moreover, islet culture with ECM components or scaffolds increased GSIS. More studies are needed to define the real impact of these strategies in improving islet transplantation outcomes.

An expandable donor-free supply of functional hepatocytes for toxicology

The B-13 cell is a readily expandable rat pancreatic acinar-like cell that differentiates on simple plastic culture substrata into replicatively-senescent hepatocyte-like (B-13/H) cells in response to glucocorticoid exposure. B-13/H cells express a variety of liver-enriched and liver-specific genes, many at levels similar to hepatocytes in vivo. Furthermore, the B-13/H phenotype is maintained for at least several weeks in vitro, in contrast to normal hepatocytes which rapidly de-differentiate under the same simple – or even under more complex – culture conditions. The origin of the B-13 cell line and the current state of knowledge regarding differentiation to B-13/H cells are presented, followed by a review of recent advances in the use of B-13/H cells in a variety of toxicity endpoints. B-13 cells therefore offer Toxicologists a cost-effective and easy to use system to study a range of toxicologically-related questions. Dissecting the mechanism(s) regulating the formation of B-13/H cell may also increase the likelihood of engineering a human equivalent, providing Toxicologists with an expandable donor-free supply of functional rat and human hepatocytes, invaluable additions to the tool kit of in vitro toxicity tests.

Recent developments in β-cell differentiation of pluripotent stem cells induced by small and large molecules

Human pluripotent stem cells, including human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), hold promise as novel therapeutic tools for diabetes treatment because of their self-renewal capacity and ability to differentiate into beta (β)-cells. Small and large molecules play important roles in each stage of β-cell differentiation from both hESCs and hiPSCs. The small and large molecules that are described in this review have significantly advanced efforts to cure diabetic disease. Lately, effective protocols have been implemented to induce hESCs and human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) to differentiate into functional β-cells. Several small molecules, proteins, and growth factors promote pancreatic differentiation from hESCs and hMSCs. These small molecules (e.g., cyclopamine, wortmannin, retinoic acid, and sodium butyrate) and large molecules (e.g. activin A, betacellulin, bone morphogentic protein (BMP4), epidermal growth factor (EGF), fibroblast growth factor (FGF), keratinocyte growth factor (KGF), hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), noggin, transforming growth factor (TGF-α), and WNT3A) are thought to contribute from the initial stages of definitive endoderm formation to the final stages of maturation of functional endocrine cells. We discuss the importance of such small and large molecules in uniquely optimized protocols of β-cell differentiation from stem cells. A global understanding of various small and large molecules and their functions will help to establish an efficient protocol for β-cell differentiation.

Disrupted pancreatic exocrine differentiation and malabsorption in response to chronic elevated systemic glucocorticoid

Glucocorticoids are antiinflammatory therapeutics that have potent effects on cell differentiation. The aim of this study was to establish whether systemic glucocorticoid exposure significantly affects pancreatic differentiation in vivo because hepatocyte-like cells have been documented to occur in the diseased rodent pancreas. Expression of hepatic markers was examined in pancreata from mice genetically modified to secrete elevated circulating endogenous glucocorticoid [Tg(Crh)]. Tg(Crh) mice with elevated glucocorticoid appeared cushingoid and by 21 weeks of age were obese, insulin-resistant, and had extensive areas of hepatic gene expression in exocrine tissue. Acinar cells from Tg(Crh) mice costained for both amylase and cyp2e1, suggesting direct acinar-hepatic transdifferentiation. Hepatic expression increased with age in the pancreas to such an extent that malabsorption and rapid weight loss occurred in a subset of aging mice; this effect was reversed by dietary porcine pancreatic enzyme supplementation. Indeed, pancreatic expression of hepatic markers was prevented by adrenalectomy, establishing a direct role for glucocorticoid. Elevated levels of circulating glucocorticoid therefore promote a transdifferentiation of adult exocrine pancreas into hepatocyte-like cells, and chronic exposure results in pancreatic malfunction. Glucocorticoids are thus capable of modulating the differentiation of terminally differentiated adult cells.

Glucocorticoid-dependent transdifferentiation of pancreatic progenitor cells into hepatocytes is dependent on transient suppression of WNT signalling

Developmentally, the pancreas and liver are closely related and pathological conditions – including elevated glucocorticoid levels – result in the appearance of hepatocytes in the pancreas. The role of the WNT signalling pathway in this process has been examined in the model transdifferentiating pancreatic acinar AR42J-B-13 (B-13) cell. Glucocorticoid treatment resulted in a transient loss of constitutive WNT3a expression, phosphorylation and depletion of β-catenin, loss of β-catenin nuclear localisation, and significant reductions in T-cell factor/lymphoid enhancer factor (Tcf/Lef) transcriptional activity before overt changes in phenotype into hepatocyte-like (B-13/H) cells. A return to higher Tcf/Lef transcriptional activity correlated with the re-expression of WNT3a in B-13/H cells. β-catenin knock down alone substituted for and enhanced glucocorticoid-dependent transdifferentiation. Overexpression of a mutant β-catenin (pt-Xβ-cat) protein that blocked glucocorticoid-dependent suppression of Tcf/Lef activity resulted in inhibition of transdifferentiation. A small-molecule activator of Tcf/Lef transcription factors blocked glucocorticoid-dependent effects, as observed with pt-Xβ-cat expression. Quercetin – a Tcf/Lef inhibitor – did not promote transdifferentiation into B-13/H cells, but did potentiate glucocorticoid-mediated transdifferentiation. These data demonstrate that the transdifferentiation of B-13 cells into hepatocyte-like cells in response to glucocorticoid was dependent on the repression of constitutively active WNT signalling.

AR42J-B-13 cell: an expandable progenitor to generate an unlimited supply of functional hepatocytes

Hepatocytes are the preparation of choice for Toxicological research in vitro. However, despite the fact that hepatocytes proliferate in vivo during liver regeneration, they are resistant to proliferation in vitro, do not tolerate sub-culture and tend to enter a de-differentiation program that results in a loss of hepatic function. These limitations have resulted in the search for expandable rodent and human cells capable of being directed to differentiate into functional hepatocytes. Research with stem cells suggests that it may be possible to provide the research community with hepatocytes in vitro although to date, significant challenges remain, notably generating a sufficiently pure population of hepatocytes with a quantitative functionality comparable with hepatocytes. This paper reviews work with the AR42J-B-13 (B-13) cell line. The B-13 cell was cloned from the rodent AR42J pancreatic cell line, express genes associated with pancreatic acinar cells and readily proliferates in simple culture media. When exposed to glucocorticoid, 75-85% of the cells trans-differentiate into hepatocyte-like (B-13/H) cells functioning at a level quantitatively similar to freshly isolated rat hepatocytes (with the remaining cells retaining the B-13 phenotype). Trans-differentiation of pancreatic acinar cells also appears to occur in vivo in rats treated with glucocorticoid; in mice with elevated circulating glucocorticoid and in humans treated for long periods with glucocorticoid. The B-13 response to glucocorticoid therefore appears to be related to a real pathophysiological response of a pancreatic cell to glucocorticoid. An understanding of how this process occurs and if it can be generated or engineered in human cells would result in a cell line with the ability to generate an unlimited supply of functional human hepatocytes in a cost effective manner.

Exocrine pancreas trans-differentiation to hepatocytes--a physiological response to elevated glucocorticoid in vivo

Damage or ectopic expression of some growth factors can lead to the appearance of hepatocyte-like cells within the pancreas. Since glucocorticoids promote liver hepatocyte phenotype in vitro, the effect of glucocorticoid on pancreatic differentiation in vivo was examined. Treatment of rats with glucocorticoid for 25 days at levels that significantly inhibited weight gain resulted in the appearance of acinar cells expressing cytokeratin 7 and hepatocyte markers glutamine synthetase, carbamoyl phosphate synthetase and cytochrome P450 2E (the nomenclature employed is that given at http://drnelson.utmem.edu/CytochromeP450.html). Using a plastic pancreatic acinar cell line, this response was shown to be associated with changes in the regulation of WNT signalling-related gene expression and a repression of WNT signalling activity. These data suggest that a pathological response of the pancreas in vivo to elevated glucocorticoid is a differentiation of exocrine pancreatic cells or pancreatic progenitor cells to an hepatocyte-like phenotype.

Tyrosine kinase receptors are crucial for normal β-cell development and function

Signaling pathways play critical roles in most physiological and pathological processes and convert an extracellular stimulus into a change of function in the recipient cell. Intracellular messages originate from the activation of membrane receptors by a variety of ligands, such as hormones, nutrients or growth factors. The receptors subsequently interact with specific intracellular cascades, triggering the phosphorylation of cell effectors. In the pancreas, these processes control the organogenesis, maintenance and function of endocrine cells within the islets. Growth factors acting through tyrosine kinase receptors play a prominent role among the multitude of signaling pathways active in pancreatic β cells. Deregulation of these processes leads to the development of disorders such as hypoglycemia or diabetes. This review will describe recent advances made on the understanding of the roles of major tyrosine kinase receptors in pancreatic β-cell physiology.

FGFR3 is a negative regulator of the expansion of pancreatic epithelial cells

Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) and their receptors (FGFRs) are key signaling molecules for pancreas development. Although FGFR3 is a crucial developmental gene, acting as a negative regulator of bone formation, its participation remains unexplored in pancreatic organogenesis. We found that FGFR3 was expressed in the epithelia in both mouse embryonic and adult regenerating pancreata but was absent in normal adult islets. In FGFR3 knockout mice, we observed an increase in the proliferation of epithelial cells in neonates, leading to a marked increase in islet areas in adults. In vitro studies showed that FGF9 is a very potent ligand for FGFR3 and activates extracellular signal-related kinases (ERKs) in pancreatic cell lines. Moreover, FGFR3 blockade or FGFR3 deficiency led to increased proliferation of pancreatic epithelial cells in vivo. This was accompanied by an increase in the proportion of potential islet progenitor cells. Thus, our results show that FGFR3 signaling inhibits the expansion of the immature pancreatic epithelium. Consequently, this study suggests that FGFR3 participates in regulating pancreatic growth during the emergence of mature islet cells.

Spontaneous recovery from hyperglycemia by regeneration of pancreatic beta-cells in Kir6.2G132S transgenic mice

The ATP-sensitive K(+) channel (K(ATP) channel) in pancreatic beta-cells is a critical regulator in insulin secretion. We previously reported that transgenic mice expressing a dominant-negative form (Kir6.2G132S) of Kir6.2, a subunit of the K(ATP) channel, specifically in beta-cells develop severe hyperglycemia in adults (8 weeks of age). In this study, we conducted a long-term investigation of the phenotype of these transgenic mice. Surprisingly, hyperglycemia was spontaneously improved with concomitant improvement of pancreatic insulin content in the transgenic mice at >25 weeks of age. Insulin-positive cells and pancreatic duodenal homeobox 1 (PDX1)-positive cells both were clearly increased in the older compared with the younger transgenic mice. Interestingly, cells labeled with the lectin Dolichos biflorus agglutinin (DBA), a potential indicator of uncommitted pancreatic epithelial/ductal cells, were detected in the islets of the transgenic mice but not in those of wild-type mice. In addition, a subset of the DBA-labeled cells was positive for PDX1, insulin, glucagon, somatostatin, or pancreatic polypeptide. Moreover, some of the DBA-labeled cells were also positive for a proliferating cell marker. These results show that the Kir6.2G132S transgenic mouse is a useful model for studying beta-cell regeneration and that DBA-labeled cells participate in the process.

Metaplasia in the pancreas

There is currently much interest in the possibility to treat chronic diseases by cell replacement or regenerative therapies. Most of these studies focus on the manipulation of undifferentiated stem cells. However, tissue repair and regeneration can also be achieved by differentiated cells, which, in certain conditions, can even transdifferentiate to other cell types. Such transdifferentiations can lead to tissue metaplasia. The pancreas is an organ wherein metaplasia has been well investigated and for which experimental models have been recently developed allowing to unravel the molecular basis of transdifferentiation. Pancreatic metaplasias studied so far include the conversion of exocrine acinar cells to duct cells, exocrine cells to endocrine islet cells, endocrine cells to duct cells, and acinar cells to hepatocytes. Epitheliomesenchymal transitions have also been described. The available evidence indicates that mature cells can be reprogrammed by specific environmental cues inducing the expression of cell type-specific transcription factors. For example, the glucocorticoid hormone dexamethasone induces pancreatic transdifferentiation to hepatocytes, whereas the combination of epidermal growth factor and leukemia-inhibitory factor induces exocrine-endocrine transdifferentiation in vitro. Further unravelling of the involved signal transduction pathways, transcription factor networks, and chromatin modifications is required to manipulate metaplasia at will and to apply it in tissue repair or regeneration.

Pancreatic hepatocellular tumor

BACKGROUND

Hepatocellular differentiation of pancreatic cells has been observed under certain conditions in several species, including humans. Their cell of origin and biology has remained controversial. Generally, these lesions have been considered a degenerative process. The present study describes a neoplastic hepatocellular lesion in Syrian hamsters.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Syrian hamsters were treated with a high dose of pancreatic carcinogen, N-nitrosobis(2-oxopropyl)amine. The lesion was confined within a single islet and expressed albumin and HSA (hepatocyte-specific antigen). The pleomorphic tumor cells exhibited numerous mitotic figures and were intermingled with insulin and glucagon cells. The hamster had multicentric premalignant and malignant ductal-type lesions, most of which appeared to arise from within the islets. This is the first demonstration of pancreatic hepatoma.

CONCLUSION

Pancreatic islet cells appear to have the potential to transdifferentiate into neoplastic hepatocytes.

Repifermin (keratinocyte growth factor-2) reduces the severity of graft-versus-host disease while preserving a graft-versus-leukemia effect

Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is the principal complication after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT). Reductions in systemic GVHD are frequently associated with a corresponding diminishment of the graft-versus-leukemia (GVL) response. In this study, we tested the effects of a novel recombinant human keratinocyte growth factor, repifermin (keratinocyte growth factor-2), on the induction of GVHD in a well-defined murine BMT model (B6 --> B6D2F1). Administration of repifermin (5 mg/kg/d) to allogeneic BMT recipients resulted in a significant decrease in both systemic GVHD and target organ histopathology. Repifermin treatment also reduced serum levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha and lipopolysaccharide compared with control mice. In contrast, repifermin did not affect T-cell proliferation, cytokine production, or cytotoxic responses to host antigens. When 2000 host-derived P815 (H-2(d)) leukemia cells were added to the bone marrow inoculum, repifermin preserved GVL effects and resulted in significantly delayed mortality compared with control-treated allogeneic BMT recipients. Collectively, these data suggest that repifermin administration may represent a novel strategy to separate the toxicity of GVHD from the beneficial GVL effects after allogeneic BMT.

Human fibroblast growth factor-23 mutants suppress Na+-dependent phosphate co-transport activity and 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 production

The human fibroblast growth factor 23 (hFGF23) and its autosomal dominant hypophosphatemic rickets (ADHR) mutant genes were incorporated into animals by naked DNA injection to investigate the action on phosphate homeostasis in vivo. The hFGF23 mutants (R176Q, R179Q, and R179W) markedly reduced serum phosphorus (6.2-6.9 mg/dl) compared with the plasmid MOCK (8.5 mg/dl). However, native hFGF23 did not affect serum phosphorus (8.6 mg/dl). Both hFGF23 and hFGF23R179Q mRNAs were expressed more than 100-fold in the liver 4 days after injection, however, the C-terminal portion of hFGF23 was detected only in the serum from hFGF23R179Q-injected animals (1109 pg/ml). hFGF23R179Q mutant was secreted as a 32-kDa protein, whereas, native hFGF23 was detected as a 20-kDa protein in the cell-conditioned media. These results suggest the hFGF23R179Q protein is resistant to intracellular proteolytic processing. The hFGF23R179Q suppressed Na/P(i) co-transport activities both in kidney and in small intestine by 45 and 30%, respectively, as well as serum 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3) to less than 15 pg/ml. However, it had little effect on serum parathyroid hormone (PTH). Infusion of hFGF23R179Q protein normalized serum phosphorus in thyroparathyroidectomized rats without affecting serum calcium. Taken together, the FGF23 mutants reduce both phosphate uptake in intestine and phosphate reabsorption in kidney, independent of PTH action.

Characterization of gap junctional intercellular communication in immortalized human pancreatic ductal epithelial cells with stem cell characteristics

INTRODUCTION

Gap junctional intercellular communication has been implicated in the homeostatic regulation of cell growth, differentiation, and apoptosis. Cancer cells, which have been viewed as "partially blocked stem cells," and which lack the ability for growth control, terminal differentiation, and apoptosis, also lack functional gap junctional communication.

AIMS AND METHODOLOGY

A clone of a human pancreatic ductal epithelial cell line, H6c7, derived after immortalization with human papilloma virus, was used to examine gap junctional intercellular communication and the ability to differentiate under different growth conditions.

RESULTS

The cells showed characteristic epithelial morphology on standard tissue culture dishes. When placed on Matrigel they showed phenotypical changes with extensive ductal organization and budding structures. In growth medium containing hormones and growth factors, these cells were gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC)-incompetent. In the presence of c-AMP elevating agents, isobutylmethylxanthine, and forskolin, in basal medium that did not contain the hormones and growth factors, the cells became GJIC-competent and expressed connexin43 gap junction protein within 48 hours after treatment. RT-PCR analyses of the cells under different growth conditions showed that the cells expressed, and genes when cultured in the basal medium with c-AMP elevating agents. They also expressed the gene that did not change with c-AMP treatment. H6c7 cells also have the capacity to turn on an ectopic insulin promoter reporter gene.

CONCLUSION

Our data suggest that the immortalized H6c7 cells retain stem-like characteristics and have the potential to differentiate into duct-like structures and perhaps insulin-producing cells.