Research advances in main signaling pathways for inducing apoptosis of activated hepatic stellate cells

Hepatic fibrosis is a chronic progressive pathological process of the liver induced by various cases. When hepatic fibrosis develops, a large amount of extracellular matrix (ECM) is deposited in the liver due to the fact that the synthesis of ECM is greater than its degradation. The key step in the development of hepatic fibrosis is the activation and transformation of hepatic stellate cells (HSC) and secretion of a large amount of ECM. One of the important means for reversing hepatic fibrosis is to induce the apoptosis of activated HSC. The main apoptotic signaling pathways, death receptor pathway, mitochondrial pathway, endoplasmic reticulum pathway, and nerve growth factor pathway, are reviewed. Selective drug intervention for the apoptotic signaling pathways of activated HSCs is expected to reverse hepatic fibrosis.