Fig. 1. Endothelial MKL1 deficiency attenuates BDL-induced liver fibrosis in mice. Liver fibrosis was induced in WT or endothelial-specific MKL1 knockout (ecKOm/m) mice by BDL.
a Plasma ALT levels and AST levels. Expression levels of pro-fibrogenic genes were examined by qPCR (b) and Western (c). d Picrosirius red and Masson’s trichrome stainings. e Hepatic hydroxylproline levels. f Immunofluorescence staining was performed with anti-MKL1 (red) and anti-α-SMA (green). N = 4 mice for the sham groups and N = 8 mice for the BDL groups.