Fig. 4

AICAR reverses the effects of NS5A on hepatic lipid metabolism via activation of AMPK. a and b The effects of AICAR on the expression of lipogenic genes in Hepa1–6 and HepG2 cells were measured using Western blotting. Hepa1–6 and HepG2 were transfected with NS5A and then treated with AICAR for 8–10 h. c AICAR inhibited SREBP-1c and FASN mRNA expression in Hepa1–6 cells as measured by qRT-PCR. d and e Representative microscopic images of Oil Red O staining of HepG2 cells transfected with a NS5A-expressing plasmid following treatment with AICAR (1 mM) for 8–10 h. Oil Red O extracted with isopropanol was measured at OD520. The values represent the mean ± SD of three experiments. NS (no significance), *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001