Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0602, USA.
J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2012 Mar;27 Suppl 2(Suppl 2):65-8. doi: 10.1111/j.1440-1746.2011.07002.x.
Chronic liver injury of many etiologies produces liver fibrosis and may eventually lead to the formation of cirrhosis. Fibrosis is part of a dynamic process associated with the continuous deposition and resorption of extracellular matrix, mainly fibrillar collagen. Studies of fibrogenesis conducted in many organs including the liver demonstrate that the primary source of the extracellular matrix in fibrosis is the myofibroblast. Hepatic myofibroblasts are not present in the normal liver but transdifferentiate from heterogeneous cell populations in response to a variety of fibrogenic stimuli. Debate still exists regarding the origin of hepatic myofibroblasts. It is considered that hepatic stellate cells and portal fibroblasts have fibrogenic potential and are the major origin of hepatic myofibroblasts. Depending on the primary site of injury the fibrosis may be present in the hepatic parenchyma as seen in chronic hepatitis or may be restricted to the portal areas as in most biliary diseases. It is suggested that hepatic injury of different etiology triggers the transdifferentiation to myofibroblasts from distinct cell populations. Here we discuss the origin and fate of myofibroblast in liver fibrosis.
多种病因导致的慢性肝损伤可引起肝纤维化，并最终可能导致肝硬化的形成。纤维化是与细胞外基质（主要为纤维胶原）不断沉积和吸收相关的动态过程的一部分。在包括肝脏在内的许多器官中进行的纤维化研究表明，纤维化中外基质的主要来源是肌成纤维细胞。正常肝脏中不存在肝肌成纤维细胞，但在受到各种纤维化刺激时，可从异质细胞群中发生转分化。关于肝肌成纤维细胞的起源仍存在争议。目前认为肝星状细胞和门脉成纤维细胞具有成纤维潜能，是肝肌成纤维细胞的主要来源。根据损伤的主要部位，纤维化可能存在于慢性肝炎中的肝实质中，也可能局限于门脉区域，如大多数胆汁性疾病。有研究提示，不同病因的肝损伤可触发不同细胞群向肌成纤维细胞的转分化。在此，我们将讨论肝纤维化中肌成纤维细胞的起源和命运。
