Pancreatic stellate cells

Pancreatic stellate cells are star-shaped cells that store vitamin A in lipid droplets when quiescent. During injury, they can activate, proliferate, and produce extracellular matrix that contributes to pancreatic fibrosis.

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Acinar cell injury: Damage to enzyme-secreting pancreatic cells that can trigger inflammation and tissue repair. Signals released by injured acinar cells help activate nearby stellate cells.
Chronic pancreatitis: Long-lasting inflammation of the pancreas that causes progressive, often irreversible structural damage. Repeated injury activates stellate cells and promotes the fibrosis characteristic of this disease.
Hepatic stellate cell: A liver pericyte-like cell that stores vitamin A and can produce extracellular matrix during liver injury. It is the closely related, better-studied stellate-cell counterpart in another organ.
Masanori Watari: A Japanese biomedical researcher who studied vitamin A-storing stellate cells in the pancreas. His work helped characterize pancreatic stellate cells and their retinoid-containing lipid droplets.
Cancer-associated fibroblast: A nonmalignant stromal cell in tumors that can influence cancer growth, immunity, and tissue structure. The relationship between activated stellate cells and this broader tumor-cell category remains under study.
Transforming growth factor beta: A family of signaling proteins that regulates cell growth, differentiation, immune responses, and extracellular matrix production. This signal promotes the matrix-producing program of activated stellate cells.
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma: The most common form of pancreatic cancer, arising from the cells lining pancreatic ducts. Stellate cells contribute to the dense fibrotic stroma surrounding many tumors.
Pericyte: A mural cell that surrounds small blood vessels and helps regulate vessel stability and function. Pancreatic stellate cells share features with perivascular support cells.
Ralph A. B. Drury: A histologist whose early studies described vitamin A-containing cells in pancreatic tissue. His observations contributed to the historical recognition of pancreatic stellate cells.
Stromal depletion: An approach to cancer treatment that reduces or eliminates tumor-supporting stromal cells or matrix. Removing stellate-cell-rich stroma can produce unexpected outcomes, challenging simple antifibrotic strategies.