Table 1.
Main characteristics of human in vitro hepatocyte models in conventional 2D culture: a qualitative assessment.
| pHHs | HepG2 | HepaRG | iPSC-heps | Upcytes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Availability | + | +++ | +++ | ++ | ++ |
| Low costs | - | +++ | + | - | + |
| Ease of use | ++ | +++ | + 1 | + 1 | ++ |
| Proliferation/lifespan | - | +++ | +++ | +++ | ++ 2 |
| Albumin synthesis | +++ | + | ++ | + | +++ |
| Urea production | +++ | + | - | + | +++ |
| Glycogen storage | +++ | +++ | +++ | +++ | +++ |
| Phase I enzyme expression | +++ | - | ++ 3 | + 4 | ++ |
| Phase II enzyme expression | +++ | - | +++ | + 4 | ++ |
1 Differentiation procedure required; 2 Limited lifespan, not immortalized; 3 Poor metabolizer for CYP2D6; 4 More fetal-like than adult expression patterns. pHHs: primary human hepatocytes; iPSC-heps: induced pluripotent stem-cell-derived hepatocytes; upcytes: upcyte or primary-like hepatocytes. Qualitative assessment: (-): absent; (+): low/poor; (++): intermediate/moderate; (+++): high/good.