Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cells Ameliorate Hepatic Stellate Cell Activation and Liver Fibrosis by Upregulating MicroRNA-455-3p through Suppression of p21-Activated Kinase-2

Figure 4

HUC-MSCs significantly attenuate severity of liver fibrosis in mice. (a) Representative images of H&E, Masson, and Sirius red staining of liver sections in olive oil-treated mice and mice of CCl₄-induced liver fibrosis treated with PBS or HUC-MSCs. Scale bars, 200 μm. (b) Relative fold change of Masson and Sirius red positive fibrosis areas compared with the olive oil-treated group. (c) qRT-PCR shows the expression of α-SMA and Col1α1 in the three groups. (d) Serum levels of ALT and AST were determined to indicate the extent of liver damage in the different groups. (e) The protein levels of α-SMA and Col1α1 in liver tissues were examined by Western blotting. (f) The amount of liver hydroxyproline was detected in the different groups. (g) Immunohistochemical analysis of mouse liver tissues for the expression of α-SMA and Col1α1. Scale bars, 200 μm. (h) Quantification of immunohistochemical analysis. Percentages of immunoreactive (α-SMA and Col1α1) areas were expressed as relative values to those in oil-treated mouse livers. The quantitative data are represented as the . Each experiment was repeated three times. , , and .

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