Establishment of a new liver regeneration therapy by suppression of NOTCH1

Research Project

Project/Area Number	26860523
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
Allocation Type	Multi-year Fund
Research Field	Gastroenterology
Research Institution	Nara Medical University
Principal Investigator	Kitade Mitsuteru 奈良県立医科大学, 医学部, 学内講師 (40526795)
Project Period (FY)	2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
Project Status	Completed (Fiscal Year 2016)
Budget Amount *help	¥3,640,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,800,000、Indirect Cost: ¥840,000) Fiscal Year 2016: ¥1,170,000 (Direct Cost: ¥900,000、Indirect Cost: ¥270,000) Fiscal Year 2015: ¥1,170,000 (Direct Cost: ¥900,000、Indirect Cost: ¥270,000) Fiscal Year 2014: ¥1,300,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,000,000、Indirect Cost: ¥300,000)
Keywords	肝再生 / NOTCH1 / 肝前駆細胞 / 幹細胞 / NOTCH
Outline of Final Research Achievements	Liver originally possesses a strong capacity for regeneration. However, once a strong liver injury occur, this potential is strongly inhibited. In this situation, it has been clarified that hepatic progenitor cells (HPC) can expand and differentiate into hepatocytes to rescue the loss of liver volume. We have focused on NOTCH1 which controls HPC differentiation efficiency. By a blockade of　NOTCH1,　we　found　that　HPC-mediated　hepatocyte　differentiation　and　efficiency　of　liver　regeneration were improved in a mouse liver injury model. Therefore, inhibition of NOTCH1 can be a new strategy for a new liver regeneration therapy.