Origins of Gastric Disease: Function of EGFR-ERK Signaling

Defective gastric progenitor cell differentiation is associated with several gastric diseases such as atrophic gastritis, intestinal chemosis and gastric cancer. The gastric body is the major part of the mouse and human glandular stomach and contains functional epithelial cells that secrete mural cell acids, main cell proteases, and pit and neck cell mucus. These cells are continuously replenished by stem/progenitor cell populations in the gastric unit, thus defects in differentiation of gastric epithelial cells are associated with gastric diseases. For example, chronic H. pylori infection can lead to pseudopyloric chemosis, in which proliferating progenitor and premature cells express increased neck and principal cell markers, while the number of mural cells is reduced.