Autophagy in anti-apoptotic effect of augmenter of liver regeneration in HepG2 cells

Figure 1 Starvation induces autophagic activation in HepG2 cells. Autophagy in HepG2 cells was observed at 0, 12, 24, and 48 h after starvation caused by serum deprivation. A: HepG2 cells were transfected with the GFP-LC3 plasmid and cultured in Dulbecco’s modified Eagle’s medium for 6 h, followed by treatment with serum-free medium. Green puncta were observed using an inverted fluorescence microscope (Nikon Eclipse E800); B: Total cell lysates were subjected to Western blot analysis with anti-LC3 and anti-β-actin antibodies; C: Typical autophagosomes and autolysosomes (arrow) in HepG2 cells were observed via electron microscopy (H-7650, Japan).