a HepG2, Huh7 and SNU-449 cells were treated with artesunate (Art) and/or sorafenib (Sora) as indicated for 24 h, while SNU-182 cells were administered the same treatments for 12 h. Cell proliferation was measured by the MTT assay. b Huh7 cells were treated with Art (25 μM) and/or Sora (2 μM) in the presence or absence of pretreatment with different inhibitors for 24 h. These inhibitors included NAC (an ROS scavenger, 5 mM), SAR405 (an inhibitor of PIK3C3/Vps34 and consequent autophagy, 1 µM), z-VAD (a pan-caspase inhibitor, 40 μM), necrostatin-1 (an inhibitor of RIP kinase and consequent necroptosis, 20 µM), and belnacasan (an inhibitor of caspase-1 and consequent pyroptosis, 20 µM). The cell survival rate was determined by the PI exclusion assay. c Huh7 cells were seeded in 12-well plates and treated with Art (10 μM) and Sora (1 μM) for 10 days. A + S, the combination of Art and Sora; **P < 0.01 compared with Art alone or Sora alone; ##P < 0. 01 compared with the combination of Art and Sora.