Primary hepatocytes and their cultures in liver apoptosis research

• Published in: Archives of toxicology Vol. 88; no. 2; pp. 199 - 212
• Main Authors: Vinken, Mathieu, Maes, Michaël, Oliveira, André G., Cogliati, Bruno, Marques, Pedro E., Menezes, Gustavo B., Dagli, Maria Lúcia Zaidan, Vanhaecke, Tamara, Rogiers, Vera
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.02.2014; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Anatomy & physiology; Animals; Apoptosis; Apoptosis - drug effects; Biomarkers; Biomarkers - analysis; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Cell Culture Techniques - methods; Cells, Cultured; Culture Media - pharmacology; Environmental Health; Epidermal Growth Factor - pharmacology; Extracellular Matrix - metabolism; Extracellular Matrix - ultrastructure; Glucagon - pharmacology; Hepatocytes - cytology; Humans; Insulin - pharmacology; Liver; Liver - cytology; Liver Diseases - pathology; Occupational Medicine/Industrial Medicine; Pharmacology/Toxicology; Review Article; Primary hepatocyte; Biomarkers; In vitro culture; Cell death; Apoptosis; Assays
• ISSN: 0340-5761; 1432-0738
• DOI: 10.1007/s00204-013-1123-4

Apoptosis not only plays a key role in physiological demise of defunct hepatocytes, but is also associated with a plethora of acute and chronic liver diseases as well as with hepatotoxicity. The present paper focuses on the modelling of this mode of programmed cell death in primary hepatocyte cultures. Particular attention is paid to the activation of spontaneous apoptosis during the isolation of hepatocytes from the liver, its progressive manifestation upon the subsequent establishment of cell cultures and simultaneously to strategies to counteract this deleterious process. In addition, currently applied approaches to experimentally induce controlled apoptosis in this in vitro setting for mechanistic research purposes and thereby its detection using relevant biomarkers are reviewed.