This article is part of the supplement: 11th International Symposium on the Cells of the Hepatic Sinusoid and their Relation to Other Cells

Proceedings

Intercellular Adhesive Structures Between Stellate Cells – An Analysis in Cultured Human Hepatic Stellate Cells

Katsuyuki Imai , Mitsuru Sato , Takeya Sato , Naosuke Kojima , Mitsutaka Miura , Nobuyo Higashi , Da-Ren Wang , Shinsuke Suzuki and Haruki Senoo

Department of Anatomy, Akita University School of Medicine, Akita 010-8543, Japan

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Comparative Hepatology 2004, 3(Suppl 1):S13doi:10.1186/1476-5926-2-S1-S13

Published:	14 January 2004

Abstract

To investigate whether or not hepatic stellate cells can form intercellular junctions with each other, we cultured human stellate cells (LI90) on different kinds of substrata. Intercellular junctions were detected between these cultured stellate cells by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The molecular components of the intercellular adhesive structures were identified by immunofluorescence microscopy. Immunofluorescence for cadherin and catenins was detected at the adhesion sites between the cultured stellate cells. Thus, the intercellular junctions were indicated to be adherens junctions at the molecular level. The junctions developed in the cultured stellate cells irrespective of the type of substratum. These data suggest that the junctional formation between the stellate cells occurs in vivo as well as in vitro.