Toll-like receptor 3 activation induces myofibroblastic differentiation of PROM1-expressing hepatic progenitor cells in vitro

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Biliary atresia (BA), the most common cause of pediatric end-stage liver disease, is associated with an aggressive biliary fibrosis. We previously showed that epithelial-mesenchymal cells expressing stem/progenitor cell marker PROMININ-1 (PROM1) expand and undergo TGF-beta mediated myofibroblastic differentiation within evolving biliary fibrosis in the murine model of BA induced by the double-stranded RNA virus, Rhesus rotavirus. Given that Toll-like Receptor (TLR)-3 signaling has been previously implicated in BA, we hypothesized that TLR3 signaling promotes the myofibroblastic differentiation of PROM1-expressing hepatic progenitor cells (HPC) in vitro.