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Basic and Translational Advances in Epithelial and Stem Cell Biology

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Original Research
Open Access
Foxl1-Expressing Mesenchymal Cells Constitute the Intestinal Stem Cell Niche
Cellular and Molecular Gastroenterology and Hepatology
Vol. 2Issue 2p175–188Published online: December 23, 2015
- Reina Aoki
- Michal Shoshkes-Carmel
- Nan Gao
- Soona Shin
- Catherine L. May
- Maria L. Golson
- and others
Cited in Scopus: 167
Intestinal epithelial stem cells that express leucine-rich repeat-containing G-protein coupled receptor 5 (Lgr5) and/or B cell specific Moloney murine leukemia virus integration site 1 (Bmi1) continuously replicate and generate differentiated cells throughout life. Previously, Paneth cells were suggested to constitute an epithelium-intrinsic niche that regulates the behavior of these stem cells. However, ablating Paneth cells has no effect on the maintenance of functional stem cells. Here, we show definitively that a small subset of mesenchymal subepithelial cells expressing the winged-helix transcription factor forkhead box l1 (Foxl1) are a critical component of the intestinal stem cell niche.