Human embryonic stem cell–derived hepatoblasts are an optimal lineage stage for hepatitis C virus infection
Fang Yan, Yi Wang, Wencheng Zhang, Mingyang Chang, Zhiying He, Jinbo Xu, Changzhen Shang, Tao Chen, Jiang Liu, Xin Wang, Xuetao Pei, Yunfang Wang – 25 February 2017 – Maturation of hepatic cells can be gradually acquired through multiple stages of hepatic lineage specification, while it is unclear whether hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is maturationally lineage‐dependent. We investigated the susceptibility to HCV at multiple stages of human embryonic stem cells, definitive endodermal cells, hepatic stem cells, hepatoblasts (hHBs), and mature hepatocytes.