Skeletal myoblast cell-sheet transplantation for liver fibrosis in mice

BACKGROUND: There have been no established effective therapies for liver fibrosis. Here, we focused on skeletal myoblast cell-sheet transplantation for this purpose, which is proved to improve cardiac function in patients with heart failure. Thus, in this study, we preclinically assessed the effect of the transplantation on liver fibrosis in a mouse model.
METHODS: Liver fibrosis C57BL/6 mice were induced by intraperitoneal administration of thioacetamide. The mice received the skeletal myoblast cell-sheet transplantation. The effect of the transplantation was examined at the extent of the fibrosis judged by histological staining and the expression of a hepatocyte proliferation marker, Ki-67, and liver fibrosis markers, Acta2 and Col1α-1, in the liver after the transplantation with comparison to the control receiving sham surgery.
RESULTS: The liver tissue was analyzed 3 and 5-week after the transplantation. The percentage of Ki-67-positive cells was significantly higher in the transplantation group than in the control group. Sirius red and Masson trichrome staining showed that liver fibrosis is less severe in the transplantation group. mRNA expression levels of Acta2 and Col1α-1 were significantly lower in the transplantation group than the control group.
CONSLUSION: These results suggested that the skeletal myoblast cell-sheet transplantation significantly improved the liver fibrosis in the mouse model. The transplantation has the potential to be a clinically therapeutic option for liver fibrosis.