Nonmuscle myosin II regulates migration but not contraction in rat hepatic stellate cells

Figure 7 Blebbistatin-inhibited endothelin-1-induced hepatic stellate cell contraction. Culture-activated hepatic stellate cells(HSCs) (Day 4) were serum-starved 24 h prior to seeding onto collagen lattices (3 × 10⁵ cells/well). Cells were pretreated with inactive (Vehicle) or active (Blebbistatin) myosin II inhibitor in increasing doses (0-25 μmol/L; 5) and subsequently treated with blebbistatin-inhibited endothelin-1 (ET-1) (1 nmol/L) after 30 min. (^aP < 0.05 as compared to scramble). A: Representative light micrographs of collagen lattices: with or without seeded HSCs; with or without chemical treatments (top panel). Twenty-four hours following chemical treatment, hepatic stellate cell contraction was quantified using PTI ImageMaster software and reported as percentage change in gel circumference (bottom panel). B: Representative light micrographs of collagen-seeded HSCs with or without chemical treatments.