Abstract
As human amniotic epithelial tissue is formed on about the eighth day after fertilization, human amniotic epithelial cells (hAEC) may have multipotency to differentiate into various organs, such as brain, heart, or liver. In this study, we showed evidence of the synthesis and excretion of albumin by hAEC, by immunostaining and enzyme-linked immunoassay. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and western blot analyses revealed the expression of albumin mRNA and protein, respectively. In addition, hAEC also demonstrated immunoreactivity to genetic markers of liver lineage, such as human serum albumin and α-fetoprotein. Transplanted hAEC to Scid mouse liver showed positive immunoreactivity to albumin and α-fetoprotein. Genetically modified cells containing the β-galactosidase (LacZ) gene (AxCALacZ) were integrated in liver parenchyma. Human polymorphic gene analysis in Scid mouse liver after the implantation of hAEC showed that these Scid mouse livers obviously contained this human-specific gene until day 7 after the cell transplantation. As hAEC do not cause any acute rejection by allotransplantation, we conclude that hAEC may be useful as a transgene carrier to treat patients with inherited liver diseases.
Similar content being viewed by others
Article PDF
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Received: December 3, 1999 / Accepted: January 31, 2000
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sakuragawa, N., Enosawa, S., Ishii, T. et al. Human amniotic epithelial cells are promising transgene carriers for allogeneic cell transplantation into liver. J Hum Genet 45, 171–176 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/s100380050205
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s100380050205
This article is cited by
-
Stem cells and COVID-19: are the human amniotic cells a new hope for therapies against the SARS-CoV-2 virus?
Stem Cell Research & Therapy (2021)
-
Isolation and biological characteristics of sheep amniotic epithelial cells
Cytotechnology (2019)
-
Amniotic epithelial cells have different in vitro proliferation capacity depending on their anatomical origin
Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering (2014)