Hypermethylation of PNPLA7 promoter existed in HCC cell lines. (A) Methylation status of the fragment was examined by BSP in HCC cell lines, SMMC-7721, Lm6, HepG2.215, QGY-7703, HepG2, Huh7, and in normal liver cell line LO2. Densitometric analysis of methylation rate of the tested fragment in different cell lines based on BSP results. (B) Methylation rates in LO2, SMMC-7721, Lm6, HepG2.215, QGY-7703, HepG2 and Huh7 were 3.3, 98.9, 77.8, 77.8, 77.8, 82.2 and 100%, respectively. **P<0.01. PNPL7, patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing protein 7; HCC, hepatocellular carcinoma.