Figure 3

Different liver fibroblastic cell populations involved in fibrogenesis and their suggested behavior during remodeling of fibrotic tissue. Similar to pericytes, hepatic stellate cells can modulate their myofibroblastic differentiation, and particularly their α-SM actin expression in response to modification of sinusoidal blood pressure; in these cells, the myofibroblastic differentiation appears reversible. The myofibroblastic differentiation of portal fibroblasts resembles that of dermal fibroblasts and seems to be a terminal differentiation requiring apoptosis for cell disappearance.