Hepatic histomorphology and histopathology and mRNA expression of inflammatory cytokines from various groups of experimental laying hens. The liver sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin (100 magnification). (A) Control (0.47 mg Cd/kg); (B) 7.58 mg Cd/kg; (C) 15.56 mg Cd/kg; (D) 30.55 mg Cd/kg; (E) 60.67 mg Cd/kg. Scale bar = 50 μm. Green arrow = periportal infiltration by inflammatory cells. (F–I) Method of 2−ΔΔCt was applied for calculation of relative gene expression with β-actin as the endogenous control and the average ΔCt value of 0.47 μmol Cd group as the calibrator to normalize the signal. Values were expressed as mean ± SE (n = 6). a-dColumns with different superscript letters are significantly different (P < 0.05). Abbreviations: PF, periportal fibrosis, BD, bile duct, CV, central vein.