Liver regeneration after injury: Mechanisms, cellular interactions and therapeutic innovations

• Published in: Clinical and translational medicine 2024-08, Vol.14 (8), p.e1812-n/a
• Main Authors: Liu, Qi, Wang, Senyan, Fu, Jing, Chen, Yao, Xu, Jing, Wei, Wenjuan, Song, Hao, Zhao, Xiaofang, Wang, Hongyang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Cell Communication - physiology; Hepatocytes - metabolism; Humans; interventions; Liver - injuries; Liver diseases; Liver Diseases - physiopathology; Liver Diseases - therapy; liver injury model; liver regeneration; Liver Regeneration - physiology; Signal Transduction; signalling pathway
• ISSN: 2001-1326; 2001-1326
• DOI: 10.1002/ctm2.1812

The liver possesses a distinctive capacity for regeneration within the human body. Under normal circumstances, liver cells replicate themselves to maintain liver function. Compensatory replication of healthy hepatocytes is sufficient for the regeneration after acute liver injuries. In the late stage of chronic liver damage, a large number of hepatocytes die and hepatocyte replication is blocked. Liver regeneration has more complex mechanisms, such as the transdifferentiation between cell types or hepatic progenitor cells mediated. Dysregulation of liver regeneration causes severe chronic liver disease. Gaining a more comprehensive understanding of liver regeneration mechanisms would facilitate the advancement of efficient therapeutic approaches. This review provides an overview of the signalling pathways linked to different aspects of liver regeneration in various liver diseases. Moreover, new knowledge on cellular interactions during the regenerative process is also presented. Finally, this paper explores the potential applications of new technologies, such as nanotechnology, stem cell transplantation and organoids, in liver regeneration after injury, offering fresh perspectives on treating liver disease. This article summarises the signalling pathways associated with various aspects of liver regeneration in different types of liver injury. This article introduces new knowledge of cellular interactions during regeneration. This article explores the potential application of new technologies such as nanotechnology, stem cell transplantation and organ tissues in liver regeneration after injury.