Skip to main content
. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2011 Apr 5.
Published in final edited form as: Semin Liver Dis. 2010 Oct 19;30(4):402–410. doi: 10.1055/s-0030-1267540

Figure 1. Cellular mechanisms linking hepatocyte apoptosis to liver fibrogenesis.

Figure 1

Engulfment of apoptotic bodies by Kupffer cells enhances their expression of death ligands which in a feed-forward loop further promote hepatocyte apoptosis and generation of apoptotic bodies. Stellate cell or myofibroblast engulfment of apoptotic bodies enhances their expression of collagen type 1 and TGFβ1, promoting development of fibrosis and cirrhosis. Apoptotic cells also release the nucleotides UTP and ATP, which bind P2Y2 purinergic receptors on myofibroblasts further promoting collagen generation.