Original Article
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World J Gastroenterol. Jul 28, 2013; 19(28): 4475-4485
Published online Jul 28, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i28.4475
Resistin mediates the hepatic stellate cell phenotype
Zhi-Xia Dong, Lin Su, Joanne Brymora, Claire Bird, Qing Xie, Jacob George, Jian-Hua Wang
Zhi-Xia Dong, Qing Xie, Department of Infectious Disease, Rui jin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200240, China
Zhi-Xia Dong, Lin Su, Joanne Brymora, Claire Bird, Jacob George, Jian-Hua Wang, Storr Liver Unit, Westmead Millennium Institute and Westmead Hospital, University of Sydney, Westmead, NSW 2145, Australia
Author contributions: Dong ZX and Su L contributed equally to this work; Dong ZX and Su L performed the majority of experiments and data analysis; Brymora J and Bird C performed part of the in vitro experiments and analyzed the data; Xie Q co-ordinated and was involved in editing the manuscript; George J was involved in editing the manuscript; Wang JH designed the study and wrote the manuscript.
Correspondence to: Jian-Hua Wang, MD, PhD, Storr Liver Unit, Westmead Millennium Institute and Westmead Hospital, University of Sydney, Westmead, NSW 2145, Australia. jianhua.wang@sydney.edu.au
Telephone: +61-2-98459131 Fax: +61-2-98459103
Received: December 31, 2012
Revised: February 13, 2013
Accepted: March 28, 2013
Published online: July 28, 2013
Core Tip

Core tip: Resistin activated hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) phospho-MAPK/p38, and p38 inhibition diminished interleukin 6 (IL-6) and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) expression. Furthermore, resistin facilitated HSC proliferation and migration, but decreased apoptosis which was via an IL-6 and MCP-1 mechanism. Finally, resistin-induced transforming growth factor β1 from Kupffer cells enhanced HSC collagen I expression. Resistin directly and indirectly modulates HSC behavior towards a more pro-fibrogenic phenotype.