KIT is required for hepatic function during mouse post-natal development.

Abstract

The Kit gene encodes a receptor tyrosine kinase involved in various biological processes including melanogenesis, hematopoiesis and gametogenesis in mice and human. A large number of Kit mutants has been described so far showing the pleiotropic phenotypes associated with partial loss-of-function of the gene. Hypomorphic mutations can induce a light coat color phenotype while complete lack of KIT function interferes with embryogenesis. Interestingly several intermediate hypomorphic mutations induced in addition growth retardation and post-natal mortality.
In this report we investigated the post-natal role of Kit by using a panel of chemically-induced hypomorphic mutations recently isolated in the mouse. We found that, in addition to the classical phenotypes, mutations of Kit induced juvenile steatosis, associated with the downregulation of the three genes, VldlR, Lpin1 and Lpl, controlling lipid metabolism in the post-natal liver. Hence, Kit loss-of-functions mimicked the inactivation of genes controlling the hepatic metabolism of triglycerides, the major source of energy from maternal milk, leading to growth and viability defects during neonatal development.
This is a first report involving KIT in the control of lipid metabolism in neonates and opening new perspectives for understanding juvenile steatosis. Moreover, it reinforces the role of Kit during development of the liver and underscores the caution that should be exerted in using KIT inhibitors during anti-cancer treatment.

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BMC Developmental Biology
Open Access
Research article
KIT is required for hepatic function during mouse post-natal
development
Laetitia Magnol1, Marie-Clémence Chevallier1, Valérie Nalesso1,
Stéphanie Retif1, Helmut Fuchs2, Martina Klempt2, Patricia Pereira1,
Michel Riottot3, Sandra Andrzejewski4, Bich-Thuy Doan5, Jean-
Jacques Panthier6, Anne Puech4, Jean-Claude Beloeil5, Martin Hrabe de
Angelis2 and Yann Hérault*1
Address: 1Institut de Transgénose, TAAM, UPS44, IEM UMR6218, CNRS, Université Orléans, rue de la Férollerie Orléans, France, 2GSF Research
centre, Institute of Experimental Genetics, Ingolstaedter Landstrasse Neuherberg, Germany, 3NOPA, INRA-Université Paris Sud, Orsay, France,
4CNRG-CNG Evry, Rue G. Crémieux, Evry, France, 5CBM CNRS, Rue Charles-Sadron, Orléans, France and 6UMR955 INRA-ENVA Maisons-Alfort,
Avenue du Général de Gaulle, Maisons-Alfort, France
Email: Laetitia Magnol - magnol@cnrs-orleans.fr; Marie-Clémence Chevallier - chevalli@cnrs-orleans.fr; Valérie Nalesso - nalesso@cnrs-
orleans.fr; Stéphanie Retif - sleroux@cnrs-orleans.fr; Helmut Fuchs - hfuchs@gsf.de; Martina Klempt - Klempt@gsf.de;
Patricia Pereira - lopes@cnrs-orleans.fr; Michel Riottot - Michel.Riottot@ibaic.u-psud.fr; Sandra Andrzejewski - sandra.andrzejewski@cng.fr;
Bich-Thuy Doan - doan@cnrs-orleans.fr; Jean-Jacques Panthier - panthier@jouy.inra.fr; Anne Puech - anne.puech@cng.fr; Jean-
Claude Beloeil - beloeil@cnrs-orleans.fr; Martin Hrabe de Angelis - hrabe@gsf.de; Yann Hérault* - herault@cnrs-orleans.fr
* Corresponding author
Abstract
Background: The Kit gene encodes a receptor tyrosine kinase involved in various biological
processes including melanogenesis, hematopoiesis and gametogenesis in mice and human. A large
number of Kit mutants has been described so far showing the pleiotropic phenotypes associated
with partial loss-of-function of the gene. Hypomorphic mutations can induce a light coat color
phenotype while complete lack of KIT function interferes with embryogenesis. Interestingly several
intermediate hypomorphic mutations induced in addition growth retardation and post-natal
mortality.
Results: In this report we investigated the post-natal role of Kit by using a panel of chemically-
induced hypomorphic mutations recently isolated in the mouse. We found that, in addition to the
classical phenotypes, mutations of Kit induced juvenile steatosis, associated with the
downregulation of the three genes, VldlR, Lpin1 and Lpl, controlling lipid metabolism in the post-
natal liver. Hence, Kit loss-of-functions mimicked the inactivation of genes controlling the hepatic
metabolism of triglycerides, the major source of energy from maternal milk, leading to growth and
viability defects during neonatal development.
Conclusion: This is a first report involving KIT in the control of lipid metabolism in neonates and
opening new perspectives for understanding juvenile steatosis. Moreover, it reinforces the role of
Kit during development of the liver and underscores the caution that should be exerted in using
KIT inhibitors during anti-cancer treatment.
Published: 5 July 2007
BMC Developmental Biology 2007, 7:81doi:10.1186/1471-213X-7-81
Received: 17 December 2006
Accepted: 5 July 2007
This article is available from: http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-213X/7/81
© 2007 Magnol et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0),
which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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Background
KIT is a well-known receptor tyrosine kinase controlling
melanogenesis, hematopoiesis, gametogenesis, hearing,
mast cells and the survival of Cajal cells from the intestine
[1-7]. Furthermore Kit is expressed in several epithelial
endothelium or endocrine cells but also in cholangiocytes
during development and in the adult [8,9]. The binding of
KITL, induces the dimerization of the KIT molecule, fol-
lowed by a change in the configuration of the intracellular
domain and the autophosphorylation of the receptor,
opening several docking sites for signal transduction mol-
ecules containing SH2 binding domains. Hence the KIT
signal is transduced by several pathways including that of
the SRC family kinases, PLC-γ, Ras/MAPK, PI3K-AKT-
mTor, JAK/STAT and also through the activation of the
SNAI2 and MITF transcription factors [for review see [10-
12]]. KIT belongs to the class III of the receptor tyrosine
kinase family with CSF1R, PDGFR-a,-b, KDR, FLT-1, -3
and -4, characterized by the presence of an autoinhibitory
juxtamembrane (JM) domain. Without phosphorylation,
the JM domain is inserted in between the N- and C-lobes
blocking the DFG (Asp-Phe-Gly) conserved motif of the
activation loop in an inactive conformation. Upon phos-
phorylation, changes in the conformation of the JM
domain opens up the ATP binding site and repositions
correctly the activation loop in the kinase domain [13,14].
Mutations that affect the activation loop are found in
human mastocytose or leukemia, while deletions or inser-
tions in the JM domain are observed in gastro intestinal
tumor (GIST) and often correspond to gain-of-function
[15]. The treatment of the Kit-induced tumors had taken a
promising perspective with the use of STI-571 (Imatinib,
Gleevec Novartis, Basel, Switzerland), that binds to the
ATP-binding site, stabilizing the autoinhibitory structure
with an inactive tyrosine kinase domain [14].
In human, Kit loss-of-function is linked to Piebald trait
[16,17] and a large panel of mutations is reported [for a
synthetic panel see [18]]. Similar pigmentation defects are
observed in mouse models [2] and the analysis of KIT
functions was facilitated by a large number of hypomor-
phic murine mutants [4,12]. Some correspond to point
mutations, others to large chromosomal rearrangements
obtained as spontaneous or induced by chemicals or radi-
ation, while a few were engineered [2,8,19,20]. Complete
lack of Kit interferes with post-natal viability [8] while
hypomorphic mutations could induce not only a variable
degree of defects during melanogenesis, hematopoieisis
and gametogenesis but also growth retardation and juve-
nile mortality [4,18].
In this report we used a panel of mutants isolated from
genome-wide mutagenesis screens to investigate the post-
natal role of KIT. These mutations correspond to a new
allelic series of hypomorphic Kit alleles that alter differen-
tially the melanogenesis, hematopoiesis and gametogene-
sis. In two such mutants, we observed an impaired
viability of the homozygotes before weaning. Clearly,
growth retardation and premature death of neonates in
both Kit mutants were associated with juvenile steatosis
during the suckling period. Further analysis pointed out
that Kit is expressed in the post-natal liver and Kit mutants
were suffering from an early defect in triglycerides (TG)
export from the liver correlated with the downregulation
of key genes participating in the control of hepatic lipid
metabolism. This series of evidence established the major
role of Kit in controlling liver triglycerides metabolism in
neonates.
Results
Characterization of a new allelic series of mutants
affecting the Kit gene
To analyze the role of Kit in neonates, we used new semi-
dominant ENU-induced mutant mouse lines named Sco1,
Sco5 ("Spotted coat"), Sow3 ("Sister of W") and Whc1
("White coat"), displaying white head blazes and belly
spots, that were isolated in genome wide mutagenesis pro-
grams [21,22] (Figure 1A). The corresponding mutations
were mapped on the mouse chromosome 5 near the Kit
locus (Figure 1B; data not shown). With the sequencing of
the Kit gene from the Sco1, Sco5 and Whc1 homozygotes,
unique missense mutations were found in the intracellu-
lar tyrosine kinase domain that affect M623L for Sco1,
V667A for Sco5 and F809L for Whc1 (Figure 1C–1D).
These changes were absent in the original C3HeB/FeJ and
other strains. No mutation was found in the exonic and
the splice junction sequences of the Kit gene from the
Sow3 mouse mutant line, suggesting that Sow3 affects the
regulation of the Kit gene as described in other mouse
mutants [19,23,24]. Nonetheless, a series of complemen-
tation assays with other known alleles including KitW,
KitW-v and Kittm1Alf confirmed that Kit function was altered
in Sow3 (Figure 1E). Therefore, the data support that the
mutants described here represent a new allelic series at the
Kit locus, with three missense mutations (Sco1, Sco5 and
Whc1) and one probable mutation affecting the regula-
tion of the Kit gene (Sow3).
Homozygous animals generated for the four mutations
displayed similar white coat pigmentation with black eyes
(Figure 1A). However, Sco1 homozygotes showed a few
grey hairs and pigmented ears suggesting that this allele
alters later stages of pigmentation [25]. Blood analysis
showed changes characteristic of macrocytic anemia, with
a significant reduction of hematocrit and red blood cell
count, together with an increase in mean red cell volume
and in mean cell hemoglobin content for all the adult
mutant mice (Figure 2A). Hematopoietic defects were
more severe in the Sco5 and Whc1 homozygotes than in
Sow3 and Sco1 mutants with however some little varia-

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New ENU-induced alleles at the Kit locus
Figure 1
New ENU-induced alleles at the Kit locus. (A) Heterozygous individuals carrying the Sco1, Sco5, Sow3 and Whc1 muta-
tions display white spotting on the belly and a white forehead blaze while homozygotes (-/-) have a white coat color with black
eyes. (B) Haplotype analysis of 114Sow3/+ mutant mice derived from the F1C3FeB6 × B6 strategy. Markers are shown with
their position (Mb) from the centromere of chromosome 5 (position based on Ensembl v33) and the position of the Kit gene is
shown by an arrowhead. The black and white boxes represent respectively the B6 and the C3Fe alleles. The cumulative
number of mice sharing the same haploid genotype is noted at the top of each column. (C) The mutated amino-acids found in
the Sco1, Sco5 alleles are located in the N-terminal hinge part of the intracellular tyrosine kinase domain of the KIT protein, at
the vicinity of the T660 amino acid, mutated in the KitW-v allele, whereas the F809 modified in Whc1 is found at the level of the
Mg2+ binding loop of the activation segment. (D) Sequence chromatograph spanning the Sco1, Sco5 and Whc1 mutation sites
respectively in exons 12, 14 and 17 of the Kit gene compared with that of a wild-type control from the same genetic back-
ground (C3Fe). The amino-acid substitution is labeled in red. (E) Transheterozygous animals carrying the Sow3 and the KitW-v
or the KitW allele exhibit a white coat color and pigmented eyes.

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tions between males and females. Finally, histological
analysis of testis isolated from adult males homozygous
for Sco1, Sco5 and Whc1 showed different stages of germ
cells differentiation while Sow3 homozygotes revealed a
complete lack of spermatogenesis (Figure 2B). These
results were confirmed by the absence of β-galactosidase
staining in the seminiferous tubules of Kittm1Alf/Sow3 tran-
sheterozygotes (Figure 2B) and assessed by a fertility test.
Only the Sco1 and Sco5 homozygotes were able to repro-
duce but no progeny was ever obtained from crosses
between Sow3/Sow3 males and wild-type females (data
not shown). Thus, Sco1, Sco5, Sow3 and Whc1 are hypo-
morphic mutations of Kit, with the expected effects,
although variable, on melanogenesis, hematopoiesis and
gametogenesis.
Sco5 mutant analysis unravels a function of Kit during
post-natal development of the liver
An impaired viability affected KitSco5 homozygotes before
weaning, with only 21 mutants recovered out of 241 off-
spring from KitSco5/+ intercrosses. Although Sco5/Sco5 gen-
otypes scored at birth with a Mendelian ratio, almost 50%
of them died before 7.5 days post partum (dpp), and only
25% survived at weaning (Figure 3A). In addition, KitSco5/
Sco5 homozygotes displayed a growth defect at 3.5 dpp,
with a weight difference reaching up to 50% of the control
at 21 dpp (Figure 3B). Comparable phenotypes were also
noted in KitWhc1/Whc1 and KitW/W-v animals, thus we ana-
lyzed further this post-natal lethal phenotype.
Necropsy analysis revealed that the liver from KitSco5/Sco5
animals at 7.5 dpp had a tan yellowish color (Figure 3C)
although it had a normal relative organ weight (data not
shown). Anemia was detected in mutants at this early age
and could partly account for the liver color alteration.
However, the spotted aspect and the presence of large
white areas in the hepatic lobes in all KitSco5/Sco5 analyzed
at 7.5 dpp (n > 10) were associated with an abnormal
structure of hepatocytes (Figure 3D). Indeed, lipid micro-
vesicular accumulation, or steatosis, was detected in
mutant hepatocytes by specific staining at 7.5 and 10.5
dpp with Oil-red-O (Figure 3D). Similar lipid inclusions
were observed in the liver of KitWhc1/Whc1 neonates (data
not shown), to a lesser extent in KitSco5/+ animals and also
in few KitSco5/Sco5 individuals that survived until two
months of age (Figure 3E). A comparable phenotype was
detected in 7.5 dpp and adult KitW/W-v mice (Figure 3E). By
contrast, KitSow3 and KitSco1 homozygotes developed nor-
mally and did not display any hepatic phenotype. Thus
the liver phenotype was not specific to the Sco5 allele of
Kit, as it was also found in a number of compound Kit
mutants.
Then, we investigated the onset of the phenotype by fol-
lowing the lipid/water ratio in the liver of newborn mice
using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR).
Accumulation of hepatic lipids in KitSco5/Sco5 mutants was
detected at 2.5 dpp (Figure 3F) suggesting that defect
started earlier. Moreover the lipid/water ratio increased
until 8.5 dpp when most of the homozygotes begun to die
(5 out of 8 studied) as predicted from the original analysis
of viability. Nevertheless, the lipid/water ratio was still
high in surviving mutants compared to controls at 10.5
dpp (Figure 3F). To further define the onset of the pheno-
type, liver sections from groups of mutants and control lit-
termates (n = 3) were analyzed during post-natal
development. No change was observed immediately after
birth in neonates that had not yet suckled any milk (Fig-
ure 3G). However, microvesicular accumulations of lipids
were found at 1.5 dpp in the liver of wild-type suckling
animals from the C3HeB/FeJ, C57BL/6J and 129S2 inbred
lines. In the Sco5/Sco5 mutant, a similar accumulation of
lipids appeared at 1.5 dpp but remained later on, showing
that lipids, derived mainly from the milk, were efficiently
absorbed by the intestine, transported in the blood but
abnormally stored in the liver. The characterization of the
hepatic lipid content revealed a dramatic increase of trig-
lycerides with no variation in phospholipids but a slight
decrease of the cholesterol in the liver of KitSco5/Sco5 mice at
7.5 and 10.5 dpp (Figure 4A). This hepatic accumulation
was not followed by an increase of the concentration of
plasma triglycerides as observed in obesity or in liver dis-
eases (Figure 4B), but the mutant mice displayed lower
concentrations of free and HDL cholesterol as well as LDL
cholesterol at both ages. Thus, lipid transport in plasma
and exchange between tissues were deficient or not yet
mature in Sco5/Sco5 suckling neonates, leading to the per-
sistence of the steatosis at 2.5 dpp and later on. Therefore,
these results suggest that the lethality induced by Kit
hypomorphic alleles was concomitant with the impaired
lipid metabolism observed in mutant animals during the
suckling period.
Kit is expressed in the liver of neonates and adults
Consistent with the phenotype, Kit gene expression was
detected during post-natal development in the liver by
using the lacZ reporter gene inserted in the first exon of Kit
from the Kittm1Alf/+ mouse [8]. Kit expression was detected
in a large number of cells in the liver from 0.5 to 2.5 dpp,
as a reminiscence of fetal hematopoiesis (Figure 5A).
Thereafter, Kit expression was confined to a few cells
located in the hepatic parenchyma and was also found in
the epithelial cells of the biliary canals at later stages and
in adults. As expected, the number of Kit+ cells was dra-
matically reduced at 0.5 dpp in moribund Kittm1Alf
homozygotes [8]. In trans-heterozygotes Kittm1Alf/Sco5 and
Kittm1Alf/Sow3, a reduced number of Kit+ cells were detected
at 7.5 dpp while steatosis was observed (Figure 5B and
data not shown). Thus, lipid accumulation was induced
by several combinations of Kit mutations during the post-

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natal period and its appearance was clearly associated
with a decrease in the number of KIT expressing cells in
the liver.
Molecular characterisation of the Kit-induced steatosis
during post-natal development
To decipher the molecular basis of Kit-dependent steato-
sis, we determined the expression profiles of key genes
involved in lipid hepatic metabolism: such as apolipro-
teins (Apoa1, ApoB), lipoprotein receptors (LdlR, VldlR,
Scarb1, Lrp1), lipase (Lipc, LipH, Lpl) and others impli-
cated in hepatic lipidogenesis (Scap, Srebf1, Srebf2), lipid
secretion (Pltp, Mttp, Abca1), bile acid synthesis (Cyp8b1,
Cyp7a1), lipid transport (Slc10a1, Abcb11, Abcb1a, Abcc2)
and a lipodystrophy gene, Lipin 1 (Lpin1), encoding a
phosphatidate phosphatase enzyme with transcription
activity [26-28]. Expression of most of the genes remained
unchanged in wild-type and mutant individuals at 10.5
dpp (not shown) except for the very low density lipopro-
tein receptor (Vldlr), the Lpin1 and the lipoprotein lipase
(Lpl) genes that were downregulated in Sco5/Sco5 mutants
compared to wild-type littermates (Figure 6). In addition
Vldlr expression appeared to be significantly retarded at
1.5 dpp just during the transient steatosis while the
expression level reached a plateau at 2.5 dpp with the
same expression level found at 10.5 dpp. The downregu-
Blood and germ cells phenotypes in mice homozygous for the Sco1, Sco5 and Sow3 alleles
Figure 2
Blood and germ cells phenotypes in mice homozygous for the Sco1, Sco5 and Sow3 alleles. (A) Specific parameters
including Red Blood Cells (RBC), Hemoglobin (Hb), hematocrit (Hct), Mean Red Cell volume (MRCV), Mean Cell Haemoglobin
Concentration (MCHC), Mean Cell Hemoglobin (MCH), Red Cell Distribution Width (RCDW), Platelet, Mean Platelet Vol-
ume (MPV) and White Blood Cells (WBC) were determined for homozygous males (Sco1/Sco1, n = 5; Sow3/Sow3, n = 11; Sco5/
Sco5, n = 6; Whc1/Whc1, n = 6) and compared to wild-type (wt, n = 11) individuals. Results are expressed as mean ± sem. (B)
Testis were sectioned and stained with Hematoxylin and Eosin showing a normal appearance and organization in the Sco1 and
Sco5 mutants. On the contrary, the seminiferous tubules of Sow3 adult mutant individuals are lacunar with a complete absence
of all the layers corresponding to the differentiation of spermatogonial stem cells. The β-galactosidase pattern of expression
reveals that Kittm1Alf/Sow3 mutant mice showed no pattern of spermatogenesis compared to Kittm1Alf/+.

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Growth and liver defects in KitSco5 homozygotes during post-natal development
Figure 3
Growth and liver defects in KitSco5 homozygotes during post-natal development. (A) Viability and (B) body weight
curves of Sco5/Sco5 individuals generated from heterozygous Sco5/+ intercrosses (Sco5/Sco5 n = 13; Sco5/+ n = 28; wt n = 16)
reveal that mutant homozygotes are strongly affected during post-natal development compared to control littermates. (C) At
7.5 dpc, livers of mutants have a more yellowish color which was associated with the appearance of some white areas (white
arrowhead). These alterations were never observed in wild-type (wt) littermates. (D) Hematoxylin and eosin, and Oil-red-O
stainings reveal the swelling of hepatocytes with formation of large lipid-containing vesicles in Sco5 homozygotes versus wild-
type mouse littermates at 7.5 and 10.5 dpp (magnification ×40). (E) Staining of Sco5/+ individuals at 7.5 dpp shows a relative
increase in lipid droplets inside hepatocytes compared to wild-type (D). A similar defect is observed in the liver of 7.5 dpp old
mice, surviving adult Sco5 homozygotes and W/W-v compound Kit mutants. (F) The lipid accumulation in the liver was studied
by NMR during post-natal development at various ages on wt (n = 5; black) and mutant (n = 9,8,8,3; white) individuals. No sta-
tistical analysis was possible at 10.5 dpp because of the death of 6 mutants out of 9 (#), but the lipid/water ratio is still
increased in mutant mice, at 10.5 dpp, in coherence with mortality scale and histology. (G) At 0.5 dpp, the Oil-red-O staining
of liver sections from Sco5 homozygous and control mice which had not yet suckled, are identical showing no accumulation of
lipids. However, after breast feeding, hepatocytes from control newborns appear to stock lipids inside microvesicles at 1.5 dpp,
a phenomenon that is not observed at later stages. On the contrary, in mutant mice which have suckled milk from their
mother, lipids accumulation is still found in hepatic cells after 1.5 dpp.

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Quantification of lipids in the liver and plasma of Sco5/Sco5 mutants
Figure 4
Quantification of lipids in the liver and plasma of Sco5/Sco5 mutants. Lipids were quantified from the liver (A; 5 indi-
viduals per genotype) and from the plasma (B; 10 individuals per genotype) of mutant and wild-type littermates at 7.5 and 10.5
dpp. Concentrations are indicated as a mean ± s.e.m and expressed as mg/g of tissue or mg/dl respectively. PL, CH, TG for
plasma lipids, cholesterol, triglycerides. HDL-C and LDL-C for cholesterol associated respectively with HDL and LDL.
***
Lipid/liver (mg/g)
0
50
100
150
7.5 dpp10.5 dpp
PL/liver (mg/g)
0
5
10
15
20
25
7.5 dpp10.5 dpp
CH/liver (mg/g)
0
1.0
2.0
3.0
4.0
7.5 dpp10.5 dpp
TG/liver (mg/g)
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
7.5 dpp10.5 dpp
CH total/plasma (mg/dl)
0
50
100
150
200
7.5 dpp10.5 dpp
TG total/plasma (mg/dl)
0
100
200
300
400
7.5 dpp10.5 dpp
LDL-C/plasma(mg/dl)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
7.5 dpp10.5 dpp
HDL-C/plasma (mg/dl)
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
7.5 dpp10.5 dpp
*
*
***
*
***
***
***
*
***
***
A
B

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lation of Lpin1 started to be detected at 1.5 dpp and was
significant at 2.5 dpp when homozygote Sco5 mutants
suffer from the clearance of microvesicular accumulated
lipids. Interestingly, the Lpic gene transcription is not sig-
nificantly affected in the Sco5 mutant at these ages. Alto-
gether, these changes at the transcriptional level of key
genes involved in hepatic lipid uptake (VldlR) or modifi-
cation (Lpin1, Lpl) are helpful to understand the molecu-
lar mechanism of the Kit-induced defect in the liver.
Discussion
A new allelic series of Kit as a tool for deciphering
downstream signaling pathways
In this paper, we described three new point mutations
inducing loss-of-function of the KIT protein (Sco1, Sco5
and Whc1) and one potential mutation affecting the regu-
lation of the Kit gene (Sow3). Several other mutants affect-
ing the level of Kit expression have been described in the
literature [2,19,23,29], unraveling that quiet a few dis-
persed regulatory elements control Kit gene expression.
Most of them correspond to large chromosomal rear-
rangement whereas Sow3 is presumably a point mutation
induced by ENU affecting a regulatory element control-
Hepatic expression of Kit correlates with liver phenotype observed in several mutants during the post-natal development and in adult mice
Figure 5
Hepatic expression of Kit correlates with liver phenotype observed in several mutants during the post-natal
development and in adult mice. (A) Kit expression was detected in the liver of Kittm1Alf/+ mice by β-galactosidase activity on
vibratome sections (40×) from 0.5 to 10.5 dpp, in adult, and on an eosin-stained sections (last panel). From birth to 2.5 dpp, β-
galactosidase staining is found in a large number of hepatic cells, a reminiscence of the haematopoietic liver activity that takes
place during late stage of embryonic development and ends after birth. As a consequence, the number of dispersed positive
cells is reduced at 3.5 dpp. However, Kit expressing cells are clearly observed in the liver from 4.5 dpp to later stages and in
adults. In Kittm1Alf/tm1Alf moribund newborns at 0.5 dpp, β-galactosidase staining is weaker due to the defect in hematopoiesis
during fetal development but still remained in few cells. (B) At 7.5 dpp lacZ expression is detected in Kittm1Alf/+ liver whereas no
expression is observed in transheterozygous Kittm1Alf/Sco5 and Kittm1Alf/Sow3 liver. Such compound heterozygotes suffer from a
strong lipid steatosis as shown here for Kittm1Alf/Sow3 liver stained with oil-red-O (last panel). A similar staining was detected in
Kittm1Alf/Sco5 liver (not shown).

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ling Kit during melanogenesis and gametogenesis. The
missense mutations described in Sco1 and Sco5, at posi-
tion M623 and V667 respectively, are found in the amino-
terminal lobe near the ATP-binding site, whereas for
Whc1, F809 is located in the DFG motif of the Mg2+ bind-
ing loop in the activation segment of the tyrosine kinase
domain[14,30]. These residues are highly conserved in
the KIT sequence deduced from various species, from
human to zebrafish, and also in other mouse receptor
tyrosine kinases from the same subfamily such as CSFR1,
PDGFR, VEGFR, and FGFR (data not shown). Interest-
ingly, the two residues mutated in Sco5 and Sco1 are
located in the amino-terminal lobe composed of β-
strands, nearby the T660, that is mutated in the W-v allele,
in the structure of the active KIT kinase [13] (Figure 1C).
Overall the mutations described here are presumably
hypomorphic because complete loss-of-function such as
in the lacZ knock-in or in the W allele are homozygous
lethal [8,31]. Of particular interest is the consequence of
the F809L mutation located in the activation loop. This
region of the tyrosine kinase domain undergoes a confor-
mational change after the transphosphorylation of the
autoinhibitory JM domain after KITL binding. Such a
change will leave open the ATP-binding site and the Mg2+
binding loop for the receptor kinase activity. In addition,
the anti-cancer drug STI-571 interacts notably with the
F809 and blocks the tyrosine kinase domain in an inactive
conformation [14]. Remarkably, the phenotypes observed
in the Whc1 homozygotes are similar to the Sco5 allele
with a strong impact on pigmentation and peripheral
blood cells but not on germ cells. The four Kit mutants
display pleiotropic phenotypes affecting with variable
degrees the melanogenesis, hematopoiesis and game-
togenesis in homozygotes. Interestingly, Sco1, Sco5 and
Whc1 displayed essentially normal gametogenesis sug-
gesting that the M623, V667 in the ATP binding site and
the F809 in the activation loop domain are not as impor-
tant as the Y719 bound by the phosphatidylinositol 3'-
kinase (PI3K) that is essential for Kit function in testis
[20]. Therefore the model of the inhibitory effect of the JM
domain should be reconsidered for the germ cells to rec-
oncile the absence of major germline defect in the Whc1
mutant. These data stress out the complexity of the down-
stream signaling pathways and the targets that are control-
led by the KIT protein in different organs.
The impaired viability of Kit mutants is associated with an
altered hepatic lipid metabolism
Similar to the KitW/Wv and the KitWads/Wads mutants recently
described [18], the post-natal viability of the Whc1 and of
the Sco5 homozygotes is strongly affected. Further
detailed analysis identifies a major defect in hepatic lipid
metabolism with steatosis at 7.5 dpp in animals carrying
various combinations of hypomorphic Kit alleles, includ-
ing W/W-v, Sco5/lac, Sow3/lac, Sco5/Sco5 and Whc1/Whc1.
Furthermore the appearance of steatosis is correlated with
the defect in growth of the mutant initiated at 3.5 dpp.
The determination of hepatic lipid content correlated the
steatosis with a deregulated accumulation of TG just after
suckling. During mammalian post-natal development, TG
originate predominantly from the maternal milk and rep-
resent the major source of energy available for the
neonates [32-34]. Ingested TG are assembled in chylomi-
crons particles and delivered to the developing organs.
Following the local action of Lipoprotein Lipase (LPL),
TG-derived free fatty acids (FFA) are absorbed by tissues
Misregulation of VldlR, Lipin1 and Lpl, in the liver of Sco5
mutants compared to controls
Figure 6
Misregulation of VldlR, Lipin1 and Lpl, in the liver of
Sco5 mutants compared to controls. At 2.5 dpp, a signif-
icant dowregulation of Lpin1 is observed in mutant (open
rectangle) compare to wild type (filled rectangle) while Vldlr
is significantly downregulated at 1.5 dpp. At 10.5 dpp, the
expression level of VldlR, Lipin1 and Lpl is low in mutant com-
pare to wild-type livers whereas the expression of Lipc is not
affected. All the data were normalized as described in the
Materials and Methods and were subjected to statistical anal-
ysis (Fischer and Student t tests, * for p < 0.05 and ** for p <
0.01).
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
Lpin1
1.5 2.5 10.5
**
*
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
VldlR
1.5 2.5 10.5
**
**
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
Lpl
1.5 2.5 10.5
*
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
2.5
Lipc
1.5 2.5 10.5

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while the remaining of the chylomicrons, the remnants, is
taken-up by the liver. During the fasting period, the liver
participates in the uptake, oxidation, de novo synthesis,
assembly and secretion of TG in very low density lipopro-
teins particules (VLDL; [35]. TG in VLDL are then used by
the tissues depending on their LPL activity. The abnormal
level of circulating LDL-C observed in Kit mutants sug-
gests a defect in the liver to export and metabolize lipids
from maternal milk. In addition, the maintenance of the
"transient steatosis" state in the Kit mutants, observed in
wild-type animals in the initial suckling phase just before
the third post-natal day (this work; [36]. We suggest that
the transient steatosis observed in wild-type animals cor-
responds to a transitory accumulation of lipids while the
liver organ of neonates adapts its physiology to the triglyc-
eride-rich regime of the suckling period. This was further
supported by the expression analysis of genes such as
VldlR and Lpin1 that start to be expressed at 2.5 dpp (this
study). In Kit mutants, a defective hepatic metabolism,
with the abnormal low expression of VldlR and Lpin1,
leads to the maintenance of this "transient steatosis".
Expression profiling for key genes participating to the
metabolism, the transport, the modification, lipidogene-
sis and biliary acid synthesis in the liver revealed that only
a few genes, namely Vldlr, Lpin1 and Lpl were downregu-
lated in Kit mutants. Consistent with the Kit-induced
hepatic phenotype, interference with lipase function
induces type I hyperlipoproteinemia in human
(OMIN238600) and more severe hyperchylomicronemia
affecting post-natal viability in Lpl mutant mice [37] or in
Combined Lipase deficiency (Cld), which alters both Lpl and
Hepatic lipase (Lipc) activities [38-40]. In addition,
VLDLR plays a major role in the metabolism of postpran-
dial lipoproteins by enhancing LPL-mediated TG hydrol-
ysis [41] and the Vldlr mutant mice suffer from growth
retardation during the suckling period [37]. Lpin1 reduced
expression is presumably a major event leading to the
abnormal metabolism of lipid in KitSco5/Sco5 mice. Indeed,
Lpin1 loss-of-function induces steatosis and juvenile
lethality in the "fatty liver dystrophy" (fld) mice, a model of
human lipodystrophy [27,42]. Recently, Lpin1 has been
shown to complement the phosphatidate phosphatase
yeast deficiency [28]. In yeast its homolog regulates the
level of triacylglycerol and FFA and represses the expres-
sion of genes involved in phospholipid synthesis. Simi-
larly the hepatic fatty acid oxidation is reduced in fld/fld
mice [43] and Lpin1 is regulated by the transcription fac-
tor PGC-1α that regulates several metabolic pathways. In
addition LIPIN1 can activate the transcription of Pparα
and coactivates with PGC-1α and PPARα a large panel of
other genes controlling lipid metabolism [44]. Therefore,
downregulation of Lpin1 in Kit mutants will lead to a
reduced oxidation of lipids and steatosis in a context of
increased lipid delivery during suckling. Similar to fld/fld
mice, some KitSco5/Sco5 animals could overcome steatosis
after weaning but the most affected ones continued to dis-
play it. Consistent with our data, hyperlipidemia was
observed in a fraction of adult KitW/W-v mice and corre-
lated with an abnormal plasmatic lipoprotein profile and
reduced lipolytic activities [45]. In addition to the Lpin1
downregulation, repression of Lpl and Vldlr would also
contribute to the hepatic Kit-induced phenotype. Interest-
ingly, Lpl homozygous mutants died within 48 h after
birth with severe hypertriglyceridemia [37]. Thus, linked
to the steatosis observed in Kit hypomorphic mutants
were changes in the expression of genes that are known to
induce hepatic lipid metabolism anomalies in mutant
mice. Such a change might explain why the hepatic defi-
ciency is found in the surviving Kit homozygote adults.
The absence of Kit expressing-cells and/or reduced Kit
activity during development might have an indirect effect.
In such a way, Kit loss-of-function mimicked the down-
regulation of Lpin1, Lpl and Vldlr leading to juvenile stea-
tosis and growth retardation. Consistently, KIT and KITL
were found to be expressed in the rat cholangiocytes [9]
and several mouse mutants of Kitl displayed comparable
low post-natal viability [46,47].
Involvement of the Kit-dependent steatosis and anemia in
post-natal lethality
The origin of the post-natal deficiency observed in Kit
mutants is commonly associated with anemia. The
mutant post-natal phenotype is improved by the injection
of mouse embryonic liver cells or bone marrow derived
cells, 24 h after birth, respectively in 26% and 32% of W/
W-v mutants [48]. The rescue is even better if the trans-
plantation of embryonic liver cells is done through the
placental circulation by day 11 of gestation [49]. Similarly
the rescue of Kit mutant mice could be achieved by eryth-
ropoietin [50]. Interestingly in such rescue, the RBC
counts and the percentage of homozygous mutants that
survived the post-natal crisis are similar to our results con-
firming that another KIT-dependent factor influences the
survival of the pups after birth. Thus we propose that the
liver defect induced by Kit partial loss-of-function is one
of these additional factors.
We described some molecular events affecting the neona-
tal hepatic function, but other changes in the liver of Kit
mutants can not be ruled out. Additional analysis will
help to describe in details the cellular mechanisms under-
lying the liver phenotype induced by Kit loss-of-function.
Thus, even though Kit-induced anemia might participate
to the post-natal crisis observed in the mutant mice, we
propose that Kit-induced steatosis is a major factor at the
origin of the post-natal mortality. Only a controlled inac-
tivation of Kit in blood or liver compartments will help to
clearly discriminate the impact of anemia and liver defect
in the Kit-dependent impaired post-natal viability.

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KIT and the signaling pathways controlling lipid
metabolism in the liver
KIT is a receptor protein kinase controlling several signal-
ing pathways. Some of them are known to control liver
metabolism, such as the PI3K-AKT-mTOR, JAK/STAT
[51,52], or to induce growth defect like for example in the
Snai2 mutant [12,53]. Thus another alternative to explain
the importance of KIT in liver homeostasis could be due
to the alteration of signaling pathways leading to
impaired lipid metabolism. Alternatively, KIT could par-
ticipate directly to the signaling pathway controlled by
lipoprotein receptors. PDGFRB, another member of the
same receptor family, is a co-receptor of the LDL receptor
related protein [54,55]. Similarly, KIT could cooperate
with members of the lipoprotein receptors family, such as
VLDLR, or could control the expression of Lpin1, regulat-
ing the hepatic triglyceride metabolism and oxidative
phosphorylation through its key position in the PPARa/
PGC-1a regulatory pathway [44]. Interestingly, altering
the binding of PI3K with the KIT protein, and reducing the
activation of AKT to 10%, does not affect the weight of
mutant animals [20], suggesting that, during the post-
natal development, the KIT-dependent metabolism of
triglycerides is not fully associated with the PI3K pathway
but results from another signalling pathway.
Kit and the Fetal liver stem cells
KIT is a cellular marker of fetal liver stem cells, is involved
in the differentiation/proliferation of the bipotent
hepato-biliary progenitor cell [56,57]. In addition Kit
expression is used to isolate population of hepatocytes
during in vitro differentiation of ES cells [58]. Consist-
ently, KITL is an important factor controlling hepatocyte
proliferation after hepatectomy in IL6 mutant mice [59].
Thus, the steatosis could be an indirect consequence of a
defect in the differentiation or the proliferation of hepatic
progenitor cells leading to the loss of KIT+ cells observed
in Sco5/lac or Sow3/lac animals. Decreasing the activity of
KIT to a certain steatosis threshold will modify the pool of
stem cells that will affect either the development of the
liver and the post-natal hepatic homeostasis. Conse-
quently, the defect in lipid metabolism of Sco5/Sco5
adults might result from a consequence of a post-natal
defect that was not compensated during the juvenile
development. This hypothesis is in agreement with the
pattern of expression of the genes tested. Kit expression is
restricted in the juvenile and adult liver. Thus we should
foresee an indirect effect of Kit on hepatocytes functions
observed in this study.
Conclusion
Taken together, these data demonstrate the key function
of Kit in neonates liver physiology and further explain the
early hepatic defect induced by Kit loss-of-function. Now,
KIT should be considered as one of the endogenous fac-
tors that could lead to steatosis [60]. A very low number
of animal models are available to study the consequences
of impaired lipid metabolism during suckling, reminis-
cent of some human conditions (OMIN 212140,
228100). These data open new perspectives for the molec-
ular understanding of juvenile steatosis, the analysis of Kit
function during liver development and support the need
to follow-up hepatic function in patients during anti-can-
cer treatment with the inhibitor of KIT activity, STI-571,
reported to affect the weight and the viability of rat
neonates [61].
Methods
Mice
The Sco1, Sco5, Sow3 mutant alleles were isolated from the
chemical mutagenesis program ongoing in the Institute of
Experimental Genetic at the GSF (Neuherberg, Germany)
whereas the Whc1 was recovered in a similar mutagenesis
screen in Orleans. Investigations were achieved in the
same genetic background C3HeB/FeJ (C3Fe) for the phe-
notypic analysis. Outcross and backcross on C57BL/6
(B6) were performed for the genetic mapping except for
Whc1 which was generated in a mixed C3Fe.B6 back-
ground. The B6 KitW and KitW-v alleles obtained from the
TJL (Bar Harbor, Maine, USA) carry respectively a deletion
of the transmembrane domain and a missense mutation
at T660 M. The 129S2 Kittm1Alf mouse line corresponds to
the disruption of the Kit gene sequence due to the inser-
tion of a lacZ reporter gene in the first exon [8]. Standard
diet (SDS) and water were provided ad libitum. All the
mice were bred under SPF conditions and experiments
were carried out according to the guidelines of the French
Ministry of Agriculture for experiments with laboratory
animals (law 87848 and YH accreditation 45–31).
Genetic and comparative gene sequence analysis
A panel of 60 MIT markers polymorphic between C3Fe
and B6 was used for a genome-wide linkage analysis as
described previously [21]. For complementation analysis,
heterozygous mutant mice carrying the Sco5, Sco1, Sow3
or the Whc1 alleles were mated separately with KitW, KitW-
v and Kittm1Alf heterozygous animals. Animals with a white
coat color were classified as trans-heterozygous individu-
als.
For the sequence determination and the genomic DNA
analysis, specific primer pairs were designed in the flank-
ing sequences of each exon, except for the large exon 21,
for which a series of overlapping PCR products were gen-
erated (Primer sequence available upon request). The
amplicons generated from DNA isolated from two litter-
mates corresponding to each phenotype (wild-type, heter-
ozygous or homozygous mutants) were directly
sequenced using the Big-dye terminator kit and analyzed
on an ABI 310 automated sequencer. The nucleotide

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changes noticed in Sco1, Sco5 and Whc1 alleles were con-
firmed to be specific to the mutant lines and not found in
the founder strain C3HeB/Fe or C57BL/6J and others con-
trol strains including DBA, CBA, BALB/c, RIII/Dmob,
RIIIS/J, 129, A/J, AKR, PWK, IS/CamRk, IS/Cam Ei, PWD,
Cast, NOD.
Phenotypic analysis
Groups of age- and sex-matched mutant and wild-type lit-
termate mice were subjected to a series of tests following
the recommendations from the standard operating proce-
dures developed inside the EUMORPHIA network [62].
Several parameters were automatically scored for blood
cell analysis by taking 100 μl of blood from suborbital
sinus of 6–8 week-old anaesthetized mice (isoflurane),
collecting them in EDTA tubes (VWR) and running them
through a Technicon H1 hematology analyser (BAYER).
Fertility tests were carried out for a period of 4 months
using 5 homozygous males mated with two wild-type
females from the same genetic background. Females were
checked for pregnancy every week and changed every two
months.
For histological analysis, the liver was fixed overnight in
Bouin's solution, embedded in paraffin wax and subjected
to classical procedures for hematoxylin-eosin (H&E)
staining. Frozen tissue sections were post-fixed with for-
malin solution (Accustain, Sigma) before staining with
Oil-red-O (ORO) and hematoxylin. Sections were
observed under a light microscope (Leica). For lacZ stain-
ing, sections of whole fresh liver were made on a
vibratome or a cryotome (Leica) and post-fixed with 5%
paraformaldehyde. The β-galactosidase activity was
revealed using a standard procedure [63]. Pictures were
taken with a Leica digital camera and processed with the
Adobe Photoshop (v.7) software.
The in vivo NMR experiments were carried out on a 9.4 T
horizontal imaging spectrometer (Bruker Biospec, USR,
Wissembourg, France) equipped with a 950 mT/m gradi-
ent coil and a 20 mm inner diameter 1H custom made
surface coil. The mice were anesthetized with 1% isoflu-
rane (TEM, Bordeaux) and the animal's temperature and
respiratory signal were controlled during anesthesia. After
liver imaging, for spectroscopy, 1D 1H PRESS spectra were
recorded on 2 × 2 × 2 mm3 voxels located inside the liver
(TR = 4 s, TE = 12 ms, na = 64, acquisition time = 6 min)
after manual or semi automatic shimming. The total dura-
tion time was about 45 min per mouse. These spectra were
used to quantify the lipids inside the liver compared with
the water signal. The water and lipids peaks areas were
integrated using the Xwinnmr Bruker software.
The lipid composition of the liver was evaluated using the
method described in Boehler et al. [64]. Briefly, frozen liv-
ers were thawed and homogenized in propanol-2 using an
ultra-turrax apparatus (Janke & Kunkel Gmb, Staufen,
Germany). After incubation at 60°C for 1 h and centrifu-
gation for 5 min at 3000 g, the supernatant was collected
and the pellet was re-extracted with propanol-2. Phos-
pholipids, triglycerides, and total cholesterol were meas-
ured enzymatically on the pooled propanolic extracts
using appropriate kits: triglycerides PAP 150, phospholip-
ids PAP 150 and Cholesterol RTU (Biomérieux S.A.,
69280 Marcy l'étoile, France). Blood chemistry analysis
was carried out with plasma isolated from Li-heparin-
treated blood on an Olympus AU400 autoanalyzer
(Olympus, Hamburg, Germany).
Expression analysis by quantitative RT-PCR
Total RNA was extracted from the liver using Trizol rea-
gent (Life Technologies). Random hexamers were used for
priming the first cDNA strand synthesis with 1 μg of total
RNA. We tested the expression of a panel of genes
involved in hepatic lipid metabolism and known to be
expressed in hepatocytes (LdlR, Lrp1, [65], ApoA1 [66],
ApoB [67], Cyp8b1, Cyp7a1 [68], Abca1 [65], Ntcp, Scap,
Srebf1, Srebf2 [69,70]), in canicular membrane (Abcb11,
Abcb1a, Abcc2, Abcb4 [65,69,70]), in both cell type (Scarb1
[71,72], Abcb4 [65,69]), in Kupffer cells (Lpl [73]) or in a
non specified hepatic area (LipH [74]; VldlR [75], Pltp
[76], Mttp [77], Lipin1 [27]). The gene specific primer
pairs for Ldlr, Vldlr, ApoeR, Lpdl, Lpin1, ApoB, Mttp, Abca1,
Scap, Srebf1, Srebf2, Cyp7a1, Abcc2, β2-microglobulin were
obtained from Quiagen (France) and the others from
Primerbank [78]. They were used to amplify the specific
transcripts from cDNA obtained from at least five differ-
ent individuals, and quantified using Sybergreen on
MX4000 apparatus (Stratagene, La Jolla, USA) using the
18S and β2m RNAs as internal standards. Data were nor-
malized for each gene using the 2-ΔΔCt method in controls
and Sco5 homozygotes littermates (n > 5 at 10.5 dpp or n
> 4 at 2.5 dpp per group) after standardization with the
18S rRNA and β2-m mRNA.
Statistical analysis
All the results are expressed by the mean ± s.e.m (standard
error of the mean). Statistical analysis was carried using
the Fischer's test and the Student's t-test and the null
hypothesis was rejected for P < 0.05 unless otherwise indi-
cated.
Abbreviations
ENU: N-Ethyl-N-NitrosoUrea
C3Fe: C3HeB/FeJ
B6: C57BL/6J
NMR: Nucleic Magnetic Resonance

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Authors' contributions
LM conceived and performed most of the experiments
and did the histological analysis for the Sco5, Sco1 and
Sow3. MCC collected the samples and did the QRT-PCR
analysis on the liver of mutant and control mice. VN and
SA generated the genetic mapping of the Sco5, Sco1, Sow3
and Whc1. SR performed the post-natal survey and col-
lected the samples for blood analysis. HF isolated and
established the Sco5, Sco1 and Sow3 mutant lines MK did
the blood chemistry analysis. PP analysed the samples
from the Whc1 mutant. MR performed the lipid analysis
of the liver. BTD and JCB performed the MRI experiments.
JJP collected the data for the expression analysis in the
liver. AP controlled the Kit sequence polymorphism in
several mouse lines. MH helped draft the manuscript. YH
drafted the final manuscript. All authors read and
approved the final manuscript.
Acknowledgements
We thank Jean-Louis Guénet, Valérie Quesniaux, Véronique Brault, mem-
bers of the laboratory for their helpful discussion and comments on the
manuscript, Elodie Desale, Karine Vallon-Geoffroy and Candice Hackney
for taking care of the animals, Angele Guilbot, M. Lathrop and colleagues
from the CNG in Evry for their support and members of the Eumorphia
consortium for their recommendations regarding the phenotype analysis.
The mutant mice are available for distribution through the EMMA network
("European Mouse Mutant Archive"). This work was funded by grants from
the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), the EURO-
COMP (QLRI-CT1999-00877) and the EUMORPHIA projects (QLG2-CT-
2002-00930) supported by the European commission under FP5.
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