Wei, W.W.WeiHua, C.C.HuaZhang, T.T.ZhangDirsch, O.O.DirschGremse, F.F.GremseHomeyer, A.A.HomeyerSettmacher, U.U.SettmacherDahmen, U.U.Dahmen2022-03-062022-03-062020https://publica.fraunhofer.de/handle/publica/26396710.1038/s41598-020-60310-02-s2.0-85081994456The liver has the ability to maintain its total size by adjusting the size of the individual liver lobes differently in response to regeneration- and atrophy-stimuli. Portal vein ligation (PVL) drives the ligated lobe to undergo atrophy whereas partial hepatectomy (PHx) drives the total remnant liver to regenerate. We hypothesize that the size of the PVL-lobe is dependent on the balance between the extent of PVL and the extent of PHx inducing a complex interplay between hepatocyte proliferation, apoptosis and autophagy. Lewis-rats were subjected to either 20%PVL&#8201;+&#8201;70%PHx or 70%PVL&#8201;+&#8201;20%PHx. Control groups consisted of 20%PVL and 70%PVL. Liver lobe weight, BrdU-proliferation-index, proliferating-cell-nuclear-antigen-mRNA-expression level, apoptotic density and autophagy-related-proteins were investigated. The PVL-liver lobe adjusted its weight differently, increasing by 40% after 20%PVL&#8201;+&#8201;70%PHx, but decreasing by 25% after 70%PVL&#8201;+&#8201;20%PHx. Additional resection induced a low, but substantial size-dependent hepatocyte proliferation rate (maximal 6.3% and 3.6% vs. 0.3% and significantly suppressed apoptotic density in the deportalized-liver-lobe (3 and 14 cells/mm2 comparing with above 26&#8201;cells/mm2, p&#8201;<&#8201;0.01). Autophagy was more activated in PVL-liver lobe after simultaneous PHx than after PVL only. In summary, atrophy of the PVL-liver lobe after simultaneous PHx was counteracted by promoting hepatocyte proliferation, inducing autophagy and suppressing apoptosis in a PHx-extent-dependent manner.enjournal article