Department of Surgery, University of Washington, Seattle, USA.
J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2011 Jan;26 Suppl 1(Suppl 1):203-12. doi: 10.1111/j.1440-1746.2010.06539.x.
The unique ability of the liver to regenerate itself has fascinated biologists for years and has made it the prototype for mammalian organ regeneration. Harnessing this process has great potential benefit in the treatment of liver failure and has been the focus of intense research over the past 50 years. Not only will detailed understanding of cell proliferation in response to injury be applicable to other dysfunction of organs, it may also shed light on how cancer develops in a cirrhotic liver, in which there is intense pressure on cells to regenerate. Advances in molecular techniques over the past few decades have led to the identification of many regulatory intermediates, and pushed us onto the verge of an explosive era in regenerative medicine. To date, more than 10 clinical trials have been reported in which augmented regeneration using progenitor cell therapy has been attempted in human patients. This review traces the path that has been taken over the last few decades in the study of liver regeneration, highlights new concepts in the field, and discusses the challenges that still stand between us and clinical therapy.
肝脏自身具有的再生能力多年来一直令生物学家着迷，使其成为哺乳动物器官再生的原型。利用这一过程在治疗肝衰竭方面具有巨大的潜在益处，在过去 50 年中一直是研究的重点。不仅对损伤后细胞增殖的详细了解将适用于其他器官功能障碍，还可能揭示在肝硬化中癌症是如何发展的，因为在肝硬化中，细胞面临着强烈的再生压力。过去几十年中分子技术的进步已经导致了许多调节中间体的鉴定，并将我们推向了再生医学的爆炸时代的边缘。迄今为止，已经报道了 10 多项临床试验，其中尝试了使用祖细胞疗法增强人类患者的再生。本综述追溯了过去几十年中在肝脏再生研究中所走过的道路，强调了该领域的新概念，并讨论了我们在临床治疗之间仍然存在的挑战。
