The knockout of latent transforming growth factor-β binding protein–1 (LTBP–1) affects the fibrogenic potential in mice liver

Aims: Latent transforming growth factor-β binding proteins (LTBP–1, –2, 3-, –4) are glycosylated proteins of the extracellular matrix involved in the secretion and controlling the bioavailability of active transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β). LTBP–1 and TGF-β are key factors in the pathophysiology of liver fibrogenesis. During this process, hepatic stellate cells (HSC) become activated and transdifferentiate into myofibroblasts. Because the knowledge of LTBP functionality in controlling and regulation the concentration of biological active TGF-β is crucial for the understanding of fibrogenesis in the liver we generated a knockout mice for LTBP–1. Here we present data derived from induced liver fibrosis by bile duct ligation in respective animals.