Hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor modulates intestinal epithelial cell proliferation and migration

Various peptide growth factors have been found to regulate epithelial cell function within the mucosal epithelium of the gastrointestinal tract. In this study hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF) was found to stimulate intestinal epithelial cell proliferation: 2.5-fold in the non-transformed rat small intestinal epithelial cell line IEC-6 and 1.9-fold in the human colon cancer-derived HT-29 cell line. In addition, HGF/SF enhanced epithelial cell restitution, the initial step involved in gastrointestinal wound healing, in an in vitro model. Migration of IEC-6 in wounded monolayers was enhanced up to 7-fold. Enhancement of restitution by HGF could be completely abrogated by addition of immunoneutralizing anti-TGF beta 1, indicating that this process is mediated through a TGF beta-dependent pathway. These findings suggest that HGF exerts functional effects on intestinal epithelial cell populations and may play a role in the morphogenesis of the gastrointestinal tract and its remodeling following injury.