Abstract: Objective To investigate the effect of Colgalt2 gene knockout on hepatocyte proliferation and apoptosis on course of hepatocyte regeneration. Methods Colgalt2+/+ wild type control mice and Colgalt2-/- mice models of 70% partial hepatectomy (PH) were established according to the protocols by Higgins and Anderson in 1931. Then the part of right lateral lobes of liver from normal mice and those 1, 3, 7 days after PH were harvested, fixed in 10% neutral buffered formalin, embedded in paraffin and cut into tissue sections. Immunohistochemistry was used to compare the expressive difference of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) in the mouse liver slices at different time points after partial hepatectomy. Primary hepatocytes of normal Colgalt2+/+ wild type control mice, normal Colgalt2-/- mice and those treated by partial hepatectomy after 1, 3, 5 days were isolated and purified by two steps of collagenase perfusion. Flow cytometry was used to detect apoptotic rate in each group. Results The number of PCNA positive cells of Colgalt2-/- mice was much larger than that of Colgalt2+/+ mice on 1, 3, 7 days after PH, and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.01). The viability of primary hepatocytes was 94%. The apoptotic rate of normal Colgalt2+/+ mice was (23.36 ± 0.83)%, and that of normal Colgalt2-/- mice was (21.04 ± 1.16)%. The apoptotic rates of Colgalt2+/+ control mice and Colgalt2-/- mice in the first day after PH were (8.27 ± 0.33)%, (8.44 ± 0.30)%. The apoptotic rates declined to the lowest on the first day after PH and then they began to increase gradually. While, the apoptotic rates of Colgalt2+/+ mice and Colgalt2-/- mice in the third day after PH were (15.92 ± 0.56)%, (12.14 ± 0.37)%. The apoptotic rate of Colgalt2-/- mice was much lower than that of wild type control mice (P < 0.01). The apoptotic rates of Colgalt2+/+ mice and Colgalt2-/- mice in the fifth day after PH were (21.36 ± 0.51)%, (18.92 ± 0.92)% which showed that the apoptotic rate of Colgalt2-/- mice was still lower than that of wild type control mice (P < 0.05). The apoptotic rates of both groups had approached to normal level approximately. Conclusions Glycosyltransferase Colgalt2 gene knockout has the effects of promoting hepatocyte proliferation in certain degree and inhibiting hepatocyte apoptosis during liver regeneration, which suggests that Colgalt2 which mediates collagen Glcα1, 2Galβ1-glycosylation may play an important regulating role in liver regeneration.
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