Knowra Hepatic stellate cell Hepatic stellate cell A liver cell in the space of Disse that stores vitamin A in lipid droplets. When activated by injury, it produces extracellular matrix and can drive liver fibrosis.
Liver fibrosis : Excessive accumulation of extracellular matrix in the liver following chronic injury. Activated stellate cells produce much of the matrix that builds fibrotic scar.
Liver sinusoid : A specialized vascular channel that carries blood through the liver between hepatocyte plates. Stellate cells occupy the perisinusoidal space alongside these channels.
Cirrhosis : Advanced liver fibrosis marked by diffuse scarring and regenerative nodules that distort liver architecture. Persistent stellate-cell activation contributes to the scar that defines cirrhosis.
Myofibroblast : A contractile, matrix-producing cell state involved in wound healing and fibrosis. Activated stellate cells acquire many myofibroblast features, but the terms describe different levels of identity.
Space of Disse : The narrow perisinusoidal space between liver sinusoidal endothelial cells and hepatocytes. Stellate cells reside here, positioned to sense signals from both blood and liver tissue.
Hepatocyte : The principal functional cell of the liver, responsible for metabolism, synthesis, and detoxification. Hepatocytes signal to neighboring stellate cells during injury and repair.
Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis : A form of fatty liver disease involving steatosis, inflammation, and hepatocyte injury, often with fibrosis. In this disease, signals from injured and inflamed liver tissue activate stellate cells.
Portal fibroblast : A fibroblast population in portal tracts that can produce extracellular matrix during liver injury. Portal fibroblasts are another source of liver scar, especially in biliary injury, but occupy a different niche.
Transforming growth factor beta : A family of signaling proteins that regulates cell growth, differentiation, immunity, and extracellular matrix production. This signal promotes stellate-cell activation and collagen production during chronic injury.
Liver sinusoidal endothelial cell : A specialized liver endothelial cell with fenestrations and little or no conventional basement membrane. These cells line the sinusoid and form the boundary beside stellate cells.
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