Essential protein that contributes to liver fibrosis

Chronic liver disease is a serious global health problem that has a severe impact on personal quality of life. A major characteristic of chronic liver disease is liver fibrosis, where certain liver cells, called hepatic stellate cells, become activated and produce scar tissue that damages the liver. At present, no specific drugs are available to treat this condition, partly because we know too little about the activation process for the stellate cells, and no specific targets have been identified to date.

A team of researchers from the Liver Cell Biology Research Group (LIVR) at Vrije Universiteit Brussel and the gastroenterology and hepatology department at UZ Brussel university hospital have now successfully identified a specific protein on the cell membrane of these liver cells. ...