Origin and role of hepatic myofibroblasts in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Origin and role of hepatic myofibroblasts in hepatocellular carcinoma. Oncotarget. 2020 Mar 31;11(13):1186-1201 Authors: Yavuz BG, Pestana RC, Abugabal YI, Krishnan S, Chen J, Hassan MM, Wolff RA, Rashid A, Amin HM, Kaseb AO Abstract Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary liver cancer and is the second leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Fibrosis and cirrhosis are important risk factors for the development of HCC. Hepatic myofibroblasts are the cells responsible for extracellular matrix deposition, which is the hallmark of liver fibrosis. It is believed that myofibroblasts are predominantly derived from hepatic stellate cells (HSCs), also known as Ito cells. Nevertheless, depending on the nature of insult to the liver, it is thought that myofibroblasts may also originate from a variety of other cell types such as the portal fibroblasts (PFs), fibrocytes, hepatocytes, hepatic progenitor cells (HPCs), and mesothelial cells. Liver myofibroblasts are believed to transform into cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) while HCC is developing. There is substantial evidence suggesting that activated HSCs (aHSCs)/cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) may play an important role in HCC initiation and progression. In this paper, we aim to review current literature on cellular origins of myofibroblasts with a focus on hepatitis B virus (HBV)- and hepatitis C virus (HCV)-induced hepatic fibrosis. We also address the rol...
Source: Oncotarget - Category: Cancer & Oncology Tags: Oncotarget Source Type: research