Myofibroblast-like cell

M. G. Bachem, D. Meyer, W. Schafer, U. Riess, R. Melchior, K. M. Sell, and A. M. Gressner, The response of rat liver perisinusoidal lipocytes to polypeptide growth regulator changes with their transdifferentiation into myofibroblast-like cells in culture, J. Hepatol. 78 40-52 (1993). 

G. Buniatian, B. Hamprecht, and R. Gebhardt, Glial fibrillary acidic protein as a marker of perisinusoidal stellate cells that can distinguish between the normal and myofibroblast-like phenotypes, Biol. Cell 87 65-13 (1996). 

Stellate cells are located within the sinusoids and store fat and vitamin A (Treinen-Moslen, 2001 Pineiro-Carrero and Pineiro, 2004 Plumlee, 2004). In the event of liver injury, stellate cells may become activated to a myofibroblast-like phenotype (Plumlee, 2004 Maddrey, 2005). Activated stellate cells produce collagen and play a role in the pathogenesis of hepatic fibrosis. 

The obvious differential expression of miR-205 and sm-a-actin is noteworthy. MiR-205 is likely not associated with smooth muscle differentiation in general since no expression is seen in the VSMC and myofibroblasts. MiR-205 is more likely related to the basal cell characteristics also seen in skin (20). The specific targets and role of miR-205 in differentiation of basal cells are not known (45). The differential expression of miR-21 and sm-a-actin is also interesting but is not as drastic as for miR-205. In addition to myofibroblasts, both smooth muscle cells in colon (46) and myoepithelial cells in breast (44) have been found to express miR-21. 

Depending on the retinoic acid concentration, a continous cellular spectrum ranging from fibroblast/myofibroblast to SMC can be obtained from P19 embryonal cells grown in vitro [371]. Since fibroblasts are considered a heterogeneous cell population, possibly with a dual differentiative capacity, it is likely that appropriate availability of specific regulating factors... 

In an in vitro model epithehal cells (T 84 cell line) were combined with myofibroblast cells (CDD-18 Co cell line) in a coculture. SCFAs as they appear in the feces of breastfed infants were used. These SCFAs stimulated mucin 2 production and improved the barrier integrity (62). The effect of SCFA on growth of pathogens like Escherichia coli (ETEC), Enterococcus faecalis. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhimurium, and Staphylococcus aureus as well as of commensals has been studied in vitro at pH 7.5 (typical fecal pH in formula-fed infants) and at pH... 

The factors that determine successfiil tissue repair versus progressive fibrosis in AIP are also unknown. In normal wound healing, tissue injury is followed by migration and proliferation of fibroblasts, production of extracellular matrix, angiogenesis, re-establishment of the epithelial border, and subsequent fibroblast cell death (apoptosis) with partial resorption of the matrix (40 2). The orderly resolution of the fibrin-rich hyaline membranes and re-epithelialization of the air space are likely essential to normal healing (40,43,44), however in DAD, myofibroblasts are protected from apoptosis while type II epithehal cells appear to be at increased risk of apoptosis (45-49). The consequences may be exuberant, uncontrolled fibroblastic proliferation, and failure to re-epithehalize the alveolus. 

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