An age-dependent proliferation is involved in the postnatal development of interstitial cells of Cajal in the small intestine of mice

• DOI: 10.1007/s00418-008-0515-7
• Publication Date: 2008-10-02T09:07:53Z
• Authors: Feng Mei; Jiang Zhu; Sheng Guo; De-shan Zhou; Juan Han; Bin Yu; Shi-feng Li; Zhong-yong Jiang; Cheng-jie Xiong
• Keywords: Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; 0303 health sciences; 03 medical and health sciences; Stem Cells; Intestine, Small; Animals; Immunohistochemistry; Cells, Cultured; Cell Proliferation

This paper aimed at investigating the alterations in interstitial cells of Cajal (ICCs) in the murine small intestine from 0-day to 56-day post-partum (P0-P56) by immunohistochemistry. The Kit+ ICCs, which were situated around myenteric nerve plexus (ICC-MY) formed a loose cellular network at P0 which changed into an intact one before P32. The density of ICC-MY increased from P0 to P12, and then decreased until P32. In contrast, the estimated total amount increased more than 15-fold at P32 than that at P0. Some Kit+/BrdU+ cells were observed at 24 h after one BrdU injection to the different-aged mice, and the number decreased from P2 to P24 and vanished at P32. Actually a few Kit+/BrdU+ cells can be observed at 1 h after one BrdU injection at P10, and the amount doubled at 24 h along with paired Kit+/BrdU+ cells. A number of BrdU+ ICCs were also labeled with CD34, CD44 and insulin-like growth factor I receptor. About 65% ICCs were BrdU+ at P32 after daily BrdU injection from P0. Our results indicate that an age-dependent proliferation is involved in the postnatal development of ICC-MY which increase greatly in cell numbers and proliferative ICCs may originate from ICCs progenitor cells.