Regulatory Roles of the Notch Signaling Pathway in Liver Repair and Regeneration: A Novel Therapeutic Target

Abstract

The liver is one of the significant regenerative organs in the body. Nevertheless, underlying molecular mechanisms regulating liver repair and regeneration following resection or damage remain largely unknown. The Notch signaling pathway is a profoundly evolutionarily well-conserved cell signaling system that mostly involves developing multicellular organisms. Malfunctions in this pathway lead to the progression of several liver disorders, including hepatoblastoma (HB), cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The Notch pathway plays a fundamental role in cell fate during the embryonic stage's progression to the adult stage in liver tissue. Modulation of Notch signaling may be used in many patients who succumb to cirrhosis due to chronic hepatitis by virus infection. This review describes the underlying mechanisms of the Notch signaling pathway in liver development and regeneration briefly and discusses how this pathway leads to the betterment of liver disorders in the clinic.

Keywords: Notch signaling; development; hepatoblastoma (HB); hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).; liver; regeneration.