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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Cell Dev. Biol.
Sec. Embryonic Development
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fcell.2024.1515524

Study on gene expression in the liver at various developmental stages of human embryos

Provisionally accepted
Hanqing Chen Hanqing Chen 1Tingting Li Tingting Li 2Ming Cai Ming Cai 3Zhiqi Huang Zhiqi Huang 3Jianjun Gao Jianjun Gao 4Hongping Ding Hongping Ding 5Minmin Li Minmin Li 6WEIYU GUAN WEIYU GUAN 3Jinpeng Chen Jinpeng Chen 3Wenran Wang Wenran Wang 5Chunhong Li Chunhong Li 5Jianwu Shi Jianwu Shi 1*
  • 1 Nantong University, Nantong, China
  • 2 Third Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu Province, China
  • 3 Nantong First People’s Hospital, Nantong, Jiangsu Province, China
  • 4 Second Peoples Hospital of NanTong, Nantong, Jiangsu Province, China
  • 5 People's Hospital of Rugao, Rugao, China
  • 6 Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The normal development of the liver during human embryonic stages is critical for the functionality of the adult liver. Despite this, the essential genes, biological processes, and signal pathways that drive liver development in human embryos remain poorly understood.In this study, liver samples were collected from human embryos at progressive developmental stages, ranging from 2-month-old to 7-month-old. Highly expressed genes and their associated enrichment processes at various developmental stages of the liver were identified through transcriptomic sequencing.Results: The findings indicated that genes associated with humoral immune responses and B-cell-mediated immunity were highly expressed during the early developmental stages. Concurrently, numerous genes related to vitamin response, brown adipocyte differentiation, T cell differentiation, hormone secretion, hemostasis, peptide hormone response, steroid metabolism, and hematopoietic regulation exhibited increased expression aligned with liver development. Our results suggest that the liver may possess multiple functions during embryonic stages, beyond serving hematopoietic roles. Moreover, this study elucidated the complex regulatory interactions among genes involved in lymphocyte differentiation, the regulation of hemopoiesis, and liver development. Consequently, the development of human embryonic liver necessitates the synergistic regulation of numerous genes. Notably, alongside conventionally recognized genes, numerous previously uncharacterized genes involved in liver development and function were also identified.These findings establish a critical foundation for future research on liver development and diseases arising from fetal liver abnormalities.

    Keywords: Livers, Human embryos, Transcriptomic sequencing, development, Gene Expression

    Received: 23 Oct 2024; Accepted: 23 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Chen, Li, Cai, Huang, Gao, Ding, Li, GUAN, Chen, Wang, Li and Shi. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Jianwu Shi, Nantong University, Nantong, China

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