Thy-1 is expressed in myofibroblasts of several organs, in liver myofibroblasts, but not in hepatic stellate cells

Background and aims: Thy-1 is a glycophosphatidylinositol-linked outer membrane leaflet glycoprotein, which is induced in fibroblast populations associated with wound healing and fibrosis in several tissues (cornea, lung, spleen). The current study examined Thy-1 expressing myofibroblastic cells of several organs and compared them with liver mesenchymal cells. Methods: Hepatic stellate cells (HSC), hepatocytes (HC), Kupffer cells and rat liver myofibroblasts (rMF) were isolated from adult Wistar rats. HSC and HC were used in primary (days 0–8 and days 0–3, respectively) and rMF in primary and passaged (p1–8) cel…