A marked increase in the level of NOX1 mRNA was demonstrated in WT liver at day 3 and reached up to 6-fold at day 10 after BDL (Fig. 1A). In both genotypes the levels of NOX2 mRNA were similarly increased at day 10 after BDL. Meanwhile, the expression of NOX4 mRNA was unchanged (Supporting Fig. 1). To examine the effect of Nox1 deficiency on liver injury, serum ALT and AST levels were measured. Ten days after BDL, both parameters were significantly higher in WT than those in Nox1-deficient mice (Nox1KO) (Fig. 1B).

Furthermore, increased levels of collagen 1α (col-1α) mRNA and hydroxyproline, an amino acid specifically contained in collagen, were significantly suppressed in the liver of Nox1KO after BDL (Fig. 1C). These findings suggest that liver injury and fibrosis Gefitinib mw were attenuated in the absence of NOX1. In line with these findings, histological

analyses demonstrated marked collagen deposition in WT liver, whereas less deposition was observed in Nox1KO after BDL (Fig. 1D). As activated HSCs are the major source of collagen matrix, expression of α-SMA, a marker of activated HSCs, was examined at 10 days after BDL. A marked increase in mRNA and protein levels of α-SMA was observed in WT, whereas the levels were significantly suppressed in Nox1KO (Fig. 2A,B). Histological analyses also illustrated that α-SMA-positive HSCs were less PD98059 order apparent in Nox1KO (Fig. 2C). Several cytokines, such as PDGF, TGF-β1, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), and macrophage chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP1) are Sodium butyrate known to take part in the development of liver fibrosis.1,

18-20 Following BDL, levels of PDGF, TGF-β1, TNFα, and MCP1 mRNAs in the liver were markedly increased, but no difference was observed between WT and Nox1KO (Supporting Fig. 2). We next investigated whether similar findings are observed in a different model of liver fibrosis. Repeated administration of the chemical hepatotoxin CCl4 elicited a significant increase in NOX1 mRNA in the liver. In contrast to the BDL model, however, the levels of col-1α and α-SMA protein were unaffected by Nox1 deficiency after 8 weeks of CCL4 treatment (Supporting Fig. 3). In the liver, expression of NOX1 was reported in hepatocytes and HSCs, but not in Kupffer cells.21 We therefore isolated hepatocytes and treated them with chenodeoxycholic acid, one of the key components involved in the pathogenesis of BDL-induced fibrosis. No change in the level of NOX1 mRNA was observed, whereas activation of caspase-3 induced by bile acid was significantly diminished in hepatocytes isolated from Nox1KO (Supporting Fig. 4A,B). We next isolated HSCs and the expression of NOX1 mRNA was assessed in primary culture. It is known that HSCs in culture are spontaneously activated.22 As shown in Fig. 3A, a time-dependent increase in NOX1 mRNA, which was undetectable until day 3, was demonstrated in cultured HSCs. Concomitantly, increased expression of α-SMA and col-1α mRNAs was demonstrated (Fig. 3B).