Fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 in hepatocytes protects from liver injury and fibrosis

ABSTRACT. The liver has a remarkable regenerative capacity, which is orchestrated by several growth factors and cytokines. We generated mice lacking Fgfr3 in hepatocytes and found increased liver injury and enhanced fibrosis in these animals. To unravel the underlying mechanisms we sequenced the RNA from isolated hepatocytes of Fgfr3 knockout and control mice and identifed differentially expressed genes involved in metabolic regulation, immune regulation and fibrosis. Alb-Cre mice and mice lacking Fgfr3 (Alb-R3) specifically in hepatocytes, were subjected to CCl4 or oil treatment for 48 hours and gene expression profiling was determined using RNA-seq