Differentiation of stem cells and stabilization of phenotypical properties of primary cells
Department of Toxicology, Dermato-Cosmetology and Pharmacognosy (FAFY)
Safety testing is a general requirement for all kind of substances e.g. drugs, food additives, plant protection products, cosmetics and chemicals in general. As the liver is a central organ in the body, responsible for the metabolism of most substances and a target organ for toxicity, in vitro models based on liver cells, are of major importance. Currently available models, however, are not stable as a function of culture time. Here, new strategies were developed using so-called epigenetic modifiers, namely histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors to create:
- Stable and functional long-term primary hepatocyte cultures of different species
- Functional human hepatocytes from mesenchymal stem cells from different adult tissues
Keywords
- Safety testing
- Stem cells
- Functional human
- Hepatocytes
- In vitro models