Hepatic fibrogenesis.

Hepatic fibrogenesis may be the end result of chronic alcohol abuse, viral or parasitic infection, heavy metal overload, bile duct obstruction, or autoimmune disease. The sinusoidal hepatic stellate cell (or Ito cell or lipocyte) is the major effector cell that proliferates during fibrogenesis and produces abnormal amounts of extracellular matrix proteins as well as matrix-degrading enzymes. This article summarizes the known matrix proteins and the putative regulatory cytokines, cytoplasmic kinases, and transcription factors involved in this process.