Supplemental Figure S5.

Leptin receptor (LepR) is equally expressed in quiescent and activated hepatic stellate cells (HSCs). LX-2 cells were treated with either vehicle or transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1, as described under Materials and Methods. α-Smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) was used as a marker of HSC activation, and LepR was assessed for expression at mRNA and protein levels. A: Real-time quantitative PCR results. B: Confocal microscopy images of α-SMA (red) and LepR (green) in LX-2 cells when quiescent (vehicle treatment) or activated (TGF-β1 treatment). N = 3 (A). ∗P < 0.05 for TGF-β1 versus vehicle. Scale bars = 50 μm (B).