Figure 4.

Effects of zinc deprivation on cell proliferation and HNF-4α function in HepG2 cells. TPEN was added at 2 μmol/L with or without zinc supplementation at 50 and 100 μmol/L elemental zinc. Cells were incubated for 4 days. A: Cell proliferation assay. Cell proliferation was measured using a Cell Proliferation Kit I from Roche Applied Science as described in the Materials and Methods. B: Western blotting of HNF-4α. The bands were quantified by densitometry analysis (Lower panel). C: HNF-4α function assay. The DNA binding ability of HNF-4α was assessed by a Trans-AM HNF Family Transcription Factor ELISA Kit. Results are means ± SD (n = 12 in A, n = 2–3 in B, n = 6 in C). Significant differences (P < 0.05) among a, b, and c are determined by ANOVA.