Fig. 5

Nrf2 mediates the effects of liquiritigenin on myofibroblast differentiation. A–C Efficiency of Nrf2 siRNA was assessed by qPCR analysis and Western blotting. D–G qPCR analysis demonstrated the impact of liquiritigenin treatment on TGF-β1-induced myofibroblast collagen I, α-SMA, HO-1, and NQO-1 mRNA levels under control siRNA and Nrf2 siRNA conditions. (H-M) Western blotting assessed the protein expression levels of collagen I, α-SMA, CAT, HO-1, and NQO-1 in myofibroblasts treated with liquiritigenin under control siRNA and Nrf2 siRNA conditions following TGF-β1 intervention. N–O Immunofluorescence microscopy displayed the effect of liquiritigenin treatment on collagen I and α-SMA expression levels in myofibroblasts under control siRNA and Nrf2 siRNA conditions following TGF-β1 intervention, with scale bars representing 100 μm. Data are presented as means ± standard deviation, and each experiment was independently repeated at least three times. (*P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001)