Fig. 2

Co-encapsulation of HNF4α-UMSCs and human hepatocytes ameliorated ALF in mice. a Schematic representation of experimental procedure design. Mice were transplanted with control or HEP, UMSC-HEP, and HNF4α-UMSC-HEP 24 h before LPS/D-gal challenge. b Survival rate of mice injected with LPS/D-gal in Control (CON), HEP, UMSC-HEP, and HNF4α-UMSC-HEP groups (n = 6–12). c Liver tissues were harvested 6 h after LPS/D-gal challenge for histopathological examination using H&E staining (Original magnification × 200). Representative images are displayed. d Immunofluorescence staining of liver sections of ALF mice with antibodies against TUNEL with DEPI. e Liver histopathological scores. Data were collected from at least six separate fields of different mice. f The serum ALT and AST activities were measured 6 h after intraperitoneal injection of LPS/D-gal (n = 6). Data were collected from at least six separate experiments and are presented as means ± S.E.M. *P < 0.05 and **P < 0.01 compared with CON. ^#P < 0.05 and ^##P < 0.01 compared with UMSC-HEP