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Improvement of the intestinal Caco‐2 cell model for iron absorption studies by the introduction of liver (HepG2) cells
Author(s) -
Scheers Nathalie Maria,
Almgren Annette,
Sandberg AnnSofie
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.27.1_supplement.223.3
Subject(s) - caco 2 , hepcidin , ferritin , absorption (acoustics) , chemistry , cell , in vitro , biochemistry , microbiology and biotechnology , biophysics , biology , immunology , inflammation , materials science , composite material
The Caco‐2 cell system is a well‐established in vitro model for iron absorption studies. However, the model does not reflect the regulation of iron absorption by secreted effectors produced in the liver. In the present study we aimed to develop the Caco‐2 cell model by introducing human liver cells (HepG2) to the Caco‐2 cells. The Caco‐2 and HepG2 cell layers were separated by a liquid compartment, which allowed for interactions between the epithelia. We observed that iron status of the Caco‐2 cells in the Caco‐2/HepG2 cell model was affected by the presence of liver cells and that hepcidin levels correlated with the changes. We also compared ferritin formation (in Caco‐2) and hepcidin release (from HepG2) induced by two bread samples in the two models. We conclude that the Caco‐2/HepG2 model may provide an alternative approach for iron absorption studies where the effects of hepcidin are desired. This study was financially supported by the region of Västra Götaland, Sweden (grant no: RUN612–470‐10)