Laboratory of Advanced Cosmetic Science, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University, 1-6 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.
Fundamental Research Institute, Mandom Corporation, Osaka, Japan.
Sci Rep. 2022 Jan 7;12(1):7. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-03991-5.
Sweat glands play an important role in thermoregulation via sweating, and protect human vitals. The reduction in sweating may increase the incidence of hyperthermia. Myoepithelial cells in sweat glands exhibit stemness characteristics and play a major role in sweat gland homeostasis and sweating processes. Previously, we successfully passaged primary myoepithelial cells in spheroid culture systems; however, they could not be maintained for long under in vitro conditions. No myoepithelial cell line has been established to date. In this study, we transduced two immortalizing genes into primary myoepithelial cells and developed a myoepithelial cell line. When compared with primary sweat gland cells, the immortalized myoepithelial cells (designated "iEM") continued to form spheroids after the 4th passage and expressed α-smooth muscle actin and other proteins that characterize myoepithelial cells. Furthermore, treatment with small compounds targeting the Wnt signaling pathways induced differentiation of iEM cells into luminal cells. Thus, we successfully developed an immortalized myoepithelial cell line having differentiation potential. As animal models are not useful for studying human sweat glands, our cell line will be helpful for studying the mechanisms underlying the pathophysiology of sweating disorders.
汗腺通过出汗在体温调节中发挥重要作用,并保护人体重要器官。出汗减少可能会增加高热的发生率。汗腺中的肌上皮细胞具有干细胞特性,在汗腺稳态和出汗过程中起主要作用。以前,我们成功地在球体培养系统中传代了原代肌上皮细胞;然而,在体外条件下,它们不能长期维持。迄今为止,尚未建立肌上皮细胞系。在这项研究中,我们将两个永生化基因转导到原代肌上皮细胞中,并开发了一种肌上皮细胞系。与原代汗腺细胞相比,永生化的肌上皮细胞(命名为“iEM”)在第 4 次传代后仍能继续形成球体,并表达α-平滑肌肌动蛋白和其他特征性肌上皮细胞的蛋白。此外,用针对 Wnt 信号通路的小分子处理可诱导 iEM 细胞分化为腔细胞。因此,我们成功开发了具有分化潜能的永生化肌上皮细胞系。由于动物模型不适用于研究人类汗腺,我们的细胞系将有助于研究出汗障碍的病理生理学的机制。