Figure 4.

FGF7 is essential for LPC activation and liver regeneration in injured livers. Adult littermates of Fgf7 knockout (KO) and wild-type (WT) mice were fed normal or DDC diet (A–G) or subjected to BDL or a sham operation (H–J). (A,H) Representative images for immunofluorescent double staining of CK19 (red) and Thy1 (green). Bars, 80 μm. (PV) Portal vein. (B,I) Quantitative image analysis of CK19-positive area. Mean ± SD (n = 3). (***) P < 0.001; (NS) not significant. (C,J) Quantitative image analysis of Thy1-positive area. Mean ± SD (n = 3). (NS) Not significant. (D) Kaplan-Meier survival curves of control (wild-type, n = 23) and Fgf7 knockout (n = 21) mice given DDC, showing that the lack of FGF7 leads to the increased mortality after DDC feeding. Statistical analysis was performed using the log-rank (Mantel-Cox) test. (E,F) Appearance of Fgf7 knockout and wild-type mice fed DDC diet for 8 wk. (F) More severe symptoms for jaundice, such as yellow-colored skin, were typically observed in the knockout animal. (G) Serum TBIL, ALP, AST, and ALT levels were measured in control and Fgf7 knockout mice fed a normal (wild type, n = 3; knockout, n = 3) or DDC-containing (wild type, n = 6; knockout, n = 3) diet for 10 wk. Mean ± SE. (**) P < 0.01; (*) P < 0.05; (NS) not significant.