Fig. 5

Anti-fibrotic effect of intra-splenic transplanted iHEPs on CCl₄-induced chronic hepatic fibrosis in BALB/C nude mice. a CCl₄ induced expression of fibrotic markers in chronic hepatic fibrosis models of BALB/C nude mice. mRNA expression of COL1A1, a-SMA, TGFb1 and fibronectin, respectively (***P < 0.0001). b Representative histological findings of liver sections that were stained with Sirius red for the assessment collagen contents. Deep red staining represents collagen deposition. Scale bar, 1 mm. c Representative histological findings of liver section that were stained with Masson’s trichrome staining for the assessment of collagen contents. Deep blue staining represents collagen deposition. Scale bar, 300 μm. d Quantification of collagen contents through image analysis of sirius red stained (Left) and Masson’s trichrome stained (Right) area using Image J software (***P < 0.0001, C + A; CCl₄ + iHEPs-A, C + B; CCl₄ + iHEPs-B)