Figure 4.

MBL deficiency leads to decreased frequency of senescent HSCs. The MBL^-/- and WT mice (n = 8 per group) were injected with CCl₄ for 6 weeks. Representative photomicrographs of (A) SA–β-gal staining and (B) Ki67 staining in fibrotic livers of WT and MBL^-/- mice. Scale bars: 100 μm. (C) Representative immunofluorescence staining of α-SMA (green) and p21 (red) in liver tissues of WT and MBL^-/- mice. Scale bars: 50 μm. (D) The mRNA levels of senescence-related genes in primary HSCs of CCl₄-treated WT and MBL^-/- mice. Data are presented as means ± SEM. ∗P < .05, ∗∗P < .01, Student t test. CCL, chemokine (C-C motif) ligand; CXCL, chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand; DAPI, 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole; HPF, high-power field; IL, interleukin; MMP, matrix metalloproteinase.