View article

There is now overwhelming evidence that hepatic stellate cells are the principal cells involved in hepatic fibrogenesis. In several different forms of liver injury it has been demonstrated that they proliferate and undergo phenotypic transformation (activation) into matrix-producing, myofibroblast-like cells in response to necroinflammation, mediated in part, by Kupffer cell-derived factors. In alcoholic liver disease, however, the observation that fibrosis can occur in the absence of alcoholic hepatitis has cast doubt on necroinflammation being an absolute pre-requisite for alcohol-related hepatic stellate cells proliferation/activation and subsequent fibrogenesis.

Evidence for hepatic stellate cells activation has been sought in liver biopsies from 38 well-documented alcoholic patients with no evidence of alcoholic hepatitis or cirrhosis and eight normal controls. Activated hepatic stellate cells were …