Deficiency of the Purinergic Receptor 2X₇ Attenuates Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis Induced by High-Fat Diet: Possible Role of the NLRP3 Inflammasome

Figure 5

Hepatic NLRP3 expression. Immunohistochemistry for NLRP3 in liver sections from representative animals ((a) original magnification 400x, additional staining pattern features in HFD-fed WT mice in (b) original magnification 400x, and (c) original magnification 1000x oil immersion) and quantification of liver NLRP3 protein content (d) and Nlrp3 mRNA expression (e) in NFD- and HFD-fed WT mice and P2x₇r^−/− mice (mean ± SD; per group). # = inflammatory cell infiltrate around degenerating hepatocytes; → = sinusoidal lining cells, especially in dilated sinusoidal spaces; > = bile duct epithelilal cells. or versus the corresponding NFD-fed mice; or versus WT mice. NLRP3 = nucleotide-binding and oligomerization domain (NOD), leucine-rich repeat and pyrin domain containing 3; Nlrp3 = NLRP3 gene; NFD = normal-fat diet; HFD = high-fat diet; WT = wild type; P2x₇r^−/− = knockout for purinergic receptor 2X₇ gene.

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