Expression profiling of Troy positive gastric cells

Proliferation of the self-renewing epithelium of the gastric corpus occurs almost exclusively in the isthmus of the glands, from where cells migrate bi-directionally towards pit and base. The isthmus is therefore generally viewed as the stem cell zone. We find that the stem cell marker Troy is expressed at the gland base by a small subpopulation of chief cells. By lineage tracing using a Troy-eGFP-ires-CreERT2 allele, single marked cells are shown to generate entirely labeled gastric units over periods of months. This phenomenon accelerates upon tissue damage. Troy+ chief cells can be cultured to generate long-lived gastric organoids. Troy marks a specific, 'plastic' subset of differentiated chief cells capable of replenishing entire gastric units, essentially serving as a quiescent reserve stem cell.

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Stange DE, Koo BK, Huch M, Sibbel G, Basak O, Lyubimova A, Kujala P, Bartfeld S, Koster J, Geahlen JH, Peters PJ, van Es JH, van de Wetering M, Mills JC, Clevers H