Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 19, 2026

Stabilizing Hepatocellular Phenotype Using Optimized Synthetic Surfaces
Published on: September 26, 2014
Transforming growth factor beta 1 differentially regulates alpha-fetoprotein and albumin in HuH-7 human hepatoma
K Nakao1, K Nakata, S Mitsuoka
1First Department of Internal Medicine, Nagasaki University School of Medicine, Japan.
Abstract:
Transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-beta 1) is known to inhibit hepatocyte growth in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we analyzed the effect of TGF-beta 1 on alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and albumin gene expression in HuH-7 human hepatoma cells. TGF-beta 1 inhibited cell growth in a dose dependent manner. The cellular secretion rate of AFP but not albumin was suppressed significantly by TGF-beta 1. TGF-beta 1 caused a significant reduction in the level of AFP mRNA. In contrast, the levels of albumin mRNA or beta-actin mRNA were not changed by TGF-beta 1. In transient transfection experiments, TGF-beta 1 resulted in selective repression of AFP promoter activity. These results suggest that TGF-beta 1 is one of the key factors involved in the differential regulation of the AFP gene and the albumin gene.
More Related Videos
07:09Hepatic Progenitor Specification from Pluripotent Stem Cells using a Defined Differentiation System
Published on: May 10, 2020
08:50In Vitro Cultivation Techniques for Modeling Liver Organogenesis, Building Assembloids, and Designing Synthetic Tissues using Human Cell Lines
Published on: April 18, 2025
Related Concept Videos
TGF - β Signaling Pathway
Liver Regeneration
Cells of Liver
The liver comprises four major types of cells— hepatocytes, stellate, Kupffer, and sinusoidal endothelial cells. The hepatocytes are large...