| Budget Amount *help |
¥8,700,000 (Direct Cost: ¥8,700,000)
Fiscal Year 2006: ¥2,200,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,200,000)
Fiscal Year 2005: ¥2,700,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,700,000)
Fiscal Year 2004: ¥3,800,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,800,000)
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| Research Abstract |
We have firstly employed immunohistochemistry using antibodies to markers specific to lymphatic vessels, including LYVE-1, VEGER-3 and Prox-1 to verify the distribution of the lymphatic vessels in a variety of organs that include the thyroid gland, lung, pleura, diaphragm, liver, intestine, Beyer's patches, appendix, tonsil and lymph node and the development of lymphatic vessels in the diaphragm. In the diaphragm lymphatic vessels develop primarily by sprouting, but prior to the formation of tubular vessels, numerous lymphatic endothelial cells(LECs) independently migrate in line to the place where lymphatic vessels will form, and later they join together to form lymphatic vessels. Secondly, we have performed some experiments using LECs harvested from the thoracic duct and cisterna chyli of the green rats. The LECs were proved to express LYVE-1 and VEGFR-3 by Western blotting and immunohistochemistry. The LECs proliferate faster in a low oxygen environment than in normal one. When cultured on collagen fiber network with natural organization, LECs rapidly form lymphatic plexus. LECs implanted in the peritoneal cavity enter the lymphatic vessels in the diaphragm. Some of the LECs implanted are incorporated into the preexisting recipient's lymphatic vessels, and others form either new lymphatic vessels or nodules. This suggests the possibility that implanted LECs participate in the formation of lymphatic vessels. When CD34^+ cells isolated from the blood of the green rats are cultured on Cell Culture Inserts[○!R] in a low oxygen condition, they form tubular structures similar to lymphatic vessels, suggesting existence of progenitor cells of LECs in the blood.
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