Liver cells

In vitro cytotoxicity assays using isolated cells have been applied intermittently to cyanobacterial toxicity testing over several years." Cells investigated for suitability in cyanobacterial toxin assays include primary liver cells (hepatocytes) isolated from rodents and fish, established permanent mammalian cell lines, including hepatocytes, fibroblasts and cancerous cells, and erythrocytes. Earlier work suggested that extracts from toxic cyanobacteria disrupted cells of established lines and erythrocytes," but studies with purified microcystins revealed no alterations in structure or ion transport in fibroblasts or erythrocytes,... 

Assume that liver cells are cuboidal in shape, 20 ym on a side. 

Kidney cells grown in culture with liver cells seek out and make contact with other kidney cells and avoid contact with liver cells. Cells grown in culture grow freely until they make contact with one another, at which point growth stops, a phenomenon well known as contact inhibition. One important characteristic of cancerous cells is the loss of contact inhibition. 

FIGURE 23.6 The PEP carboxykinase reaction. GTP formed in this reaction can be converted to ATP by nucleoside diphosphate kinase, althongh liver cells in some species may not contain this enzyme. 

FIGURE 25.38 Lipoprotein components are synthesized predominantly in the ER of liver cells. Following assembly of lipoprotein particles red dots) in the ER and processing in the Golgi, lipoproteins are packaged in secretory vesicles for export from the cell (via exocy-tosis) and released into the circulatory system. 

Cellular therapies in transplantation and cancer are based on specific cells separated or sorted from human blood, bone marrow, or cord blood by means of their specific cell surface markers or cell differentiation antigens, e.g., CD3, CD4, CD8, CD 14, CD 19, and CD34. For example, the CD34+ stem cells, especially those derived from human embryos, have the capacity to differentiate in culture to generate different somatic cells, e.g., liver cells, heart cells, neurons, etc. This exploding field of research is now termed regenerative medicine. 

Systemic treatment of 13-cis retinoic acid frequently leads to cheilitis and eye irritations (e.g., unspecific cornea inflammation). Also other symptoms such as headache, pruritus, alopecia, pains of joints and bone, and exostosis formation have been reported. Notably, an increase of very low density lipoproteins and triglycerides accompanied by a decrease of the high density lipoproteins has been reported in 10-20% of treated patients. Transiently, liver function markers can increase during oral retinoid therapy. Etretinate causes the side effects of 13-cis retinoid acid at lower doses. In addition to this, generalized edema and centrilobulary toxic liver cell necrosis have been observed. 

Acute acetaminophen poisoning or toxicily can occur after a single 10- to 15-g dose of acetaminophen. Dosses of 20 to 25 g may be fatal. With excessive dosages die liver cells necrose or die Death can occur due to liver failure The risk of liver failure increases in patients who are chronic alcoholics. 

Penninks Seinen (1980) looked at subcellular distribution of dibutyltin in rat liver and thymus cells in vitro. Radioactivity was concentrated in mitochondria and low in cytoplasm in thymus cells, in marked contrast to liver cells, where mitochondrial radioactivity was very low. Differences in cellular distribution have been suggested as a reason for the selective effect on the thymus. 

Intoxicated patients surviving for 28 hours to 9 days had hepatocytes free in central or hepatic veins this finding was described as mobilization of liver cells. The role of methyl parathion in the induction of all of these lesions is unclear. 

Fransson-Steen R, Warngard L. 1992. Inhibitory effects of endosulfan on gap junctional intercellular communication in WB-F344 rat liver cells and primary rat hepatocytes. Carcinogenesis 13(4) 657-662. 

Zhang X., Simmons C.G., Corey D.R. Liver cell specific targeting of peptide nucleic acid oligomers. Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett. 2001 11 1269-1272. 

Roerdink, F., Dijkstra, J., Hartman, G., Bolscher, B., and Scher-phof, G. L. (1981). The involvement of parenchymal, Kupffer and endothelial liver cells in the hepatic uptake of intravenously injected liposomes, Biochim. Biophys. Acta, 677, 79-89. 

Smith, M. T., Thor, H., and Orrenius, S. (1983). The role of lipid peroxidation in the toxicity of foreign compounds to liver cells, Biochem. Pharmacol., 32, 763-764. 

Cholesterol is found in many biological membrane and is the main sterol of animal organisms. It is eqnimolar with phospholipids in membranes of liver cell, erythrocytes, and myelin, whereas in human stratum comeum it lies in the outermost layer of the epidermis... 

Type 1 Von Gierke s disease Deficiency of glucose-6-phosphatase Liver cells and renal tubule cells loaded with glycogen. Hypoglycemia, lactic-acidemia, ketosis, hyperlipemia. 

Proteins are degraded by both ATP-dependent and ATP-independent pathways. Ubiquitin targets many intracellular proteins for degradation. Liver cell surface receptors bind and internalize circulating asialoglycoproteins destined for lysosomal degradation. 

There is a dark side to receptor-mediated endocyto-sis in that viruses which cause such diseases as hepatitis (affecting liver cells), poliomyelitis (affecting motor neurons), and AIDS (affecting T cells) initiate their damage by this mechanism. Iron toxicity also begins with excessive uptake due to endocytosis. 

Copper is an essential trace element. It is required in the diet because it is the metal cofactor for a variety of enzymes (see Table 50—5). Copper accepts and donates electrons and is involved in reactions involving dismu-tation, hydroxylation, and oxygenation. However, excess copper can cause problems because it can oxidize proteins and hpids, bind to nucleic acids, and enhance the production of free radicals. It is thus important to have mechanisms that will maintain the amount of copper in the body within normal hmits. The body of the normal adult contains about 100 mg of copper, located mostly in bone, liver, kidney, and muscle. The daily intake of copper is about 2—A mg, with about 50% being absorbed in the stomach and upper small intestine and the remainder excreted in the feces. Copper is carried to the liver bound to albumin, taken up by liver cells, and part of it is excreted in the bile. Copper also leaves the liver attached to ceruloplasmin, which is synthesized in that organ. 

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