Figure 4.
Praziquantel (PZQ) inhibits TGF‐β1‐induced hepatic stellate cells activation in vitro. (a) Quantitative real‐time PCR analysis of collagen type I α1 (COL1A1) and α‐smooth muscle actin (α‐SMA) mRNA expression in LX‐2 cells. The ΔΔCt method was used to quantify relative changes (n = 6). (b) Western blot for COL1A1, α‐SMA, and a loading control (GAPDH) protein levels in LX‐2 cells. (c) Quantitative analysis of COL1A1, α‐SMA, and GAPDH expression (n = 5). (d) Immunofluorescence staining of LX‐2 cells with antibodies against COL1A1 and α‐SMA. Images are captured with confocal microscopy (n = 5). Scale bar, 100 μm. All data are presented as means ± SEM. *P < .05, significantly different as indicated; ns, non‐significant