The present invention relates to a
multipotent stem cell,
multipotent cell populations, and an enriched
multipotent cell population, each found in fetal, neonatal, pediatric, and adult biliary tree tissue and up to 72 hours post mortem (although preferentially, within 10 hours post mortem) and capable of maturing into multiple endodermal tissues that include liver, biliary and pancreatic tissues. The multipotent stem /
progenitor cell and
cell populations are found in peribiliary glands, and progenitors descending from them are present throughout the biliary tree including in the
gallbladder. High numbers of the peribiliary glands are found in the branching locations of the biliary tree such as hilum, common hepatic duct, cystic duct,
common duct, common hepato-
pancreatic duct and
gallbladder. Related multipotent cells,
multipotent cell populations and their
descendent progenitors are found throughout the biliary tree including in the
gall bladder, which does not have peribiliary glands. Compositions comprising same, methods of identifying and isolating same, maintaining same in culture, expanding same in culture and differentiating or lineage restricting the same
in vitro or
in vivo to hepatic, biliary or pancreatic fates (e.g., as hepatocytes, cholangiocytes, and / or pancreatic
islet cells) are also provided. Methods of using the multipotent cells and / or multipotent
cell populations are also provided.