[Effects of anandamide on the activation and proliferation of hepatic stellate cells through cannabinoid-2 receptors].

Objective: To study the effects of endogenous cannabinoid anandamide (AEA) and its putative endocannabinoid receptors (CBR) on the activation and proliferation of hepatic stellate cells (HSC) and to study the role played by AEA during liver fibrosis.

Methods: By using immunofluorescence and cell culture, the expression of CBR 1 and 2 in the PDGF-stimulated HSCs was investigated. By using PCR and Western-blot, the effects of 10, 20mumol/L AEA and CBR2 antagonist AM630 on the cultured and activated HSC were observed.

[The effects of sympathetic neurotransmitters and adrenergic receptors on liver fibrosis in murine schistosomiasis].

Objective: To investigate the effects of sympathetic neurotransmitters and adrenergic receptors on liver fibrosis in murine schistosomiasis.

Methods: Mice were infestated with schistosoma by means of pasting cercariae on their abdomens. Thirty mice were randomly divided into a control group and a model group.