C-Kit⁺ Cells in Adult Salivary Glands do not Function as Tissue Stem Cells.

ABSTRACT: A rare population of salivary gland cells isolated based on c-Kit immunoreactivity are thought to represent tissue stem cells since they exhibit the most robust proliferative and differentiation capacity ex vivo. Despite their high promise for cell-based therapies aimed at restoring salivary function, the precise location and in vivo function of c-Kit⁺ stem cells remain unclear. Here, by combining immunostaining with c-KitCre^ERT2-based genetic labeling and lineage tracing in the adult mouse salivary glands, we show that c-Kit is expressed in a relatively large and heterogeneous cell population that consists mostly of differentiated cells. Moreover, c-Kit does not mark ductal stem cells that are known to express cytokeratin K14. Tracking the fate of in vivo-labeled c-K

SUBMITTER: Kwak M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6155036 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature