Fig. 3

Knockdown of lnc-Helf alleviates hepatic fibrosis induced by BDL. Mice were divided into six groups: AAV8-NC, NC + BDL, lnc-Helf-sh1#, lnc-Helf-sh1# + BDL, lnc-Helf-sh2#, and lnc-Helf-sh2# + BDL. Mice were injected with AAV8-lnc-Helf-shRNAs or AAV8-NC virus 2 days before sham operation or bile duct ligation operation via tail vein. After 21 days of operation. A The degree of liver fibrosis was evaluated by morphological detection: H&E staining, Masson staining, and Sirius red staining. Five images of each liver and five livers from different mice were quantified for each group; Scale bar is 400 μm for 10× magnification. B Western blot was used to determine the protein level of MMP2, α-SMA, TIMP1, CD11b, TNF-α, IL-1β, and MCP1. GAPDH was used as an internal control. C, D qRT–PCR was used to assess the expression of profibrogenic genes (Acta2, Col1α1, Mmp2, Timp1, and Tgfβ1) and proinflammatory genes (Tnf-α, Mcp1, Il-6, and Il-1β) in livers of each group (n = 3). E The content of hepatic hydroxyproline was quantified in livers of each group (n = 5). The data were displayed as hydroxyproline (μg)/liver wet weight. Data are presented as mean ± SEM. ^*/#p < 0.05. *p < 0.05 for AAV8-NC. ^#p < 0.05 for NC + BDL, one-way ANOVA (A and C–E)