Fig. 1

Expression and distribution of Cx32, Cx26 and Cx43 in patients with HCC. a. The protein expression levels of Cx32, Cx26 and Cx43 were determined by western blot analysis. β-actin was used as the loading control. b. The expression of Cx32 was correlated with increased TNM stages, as revealed by western blot analysis. β-actin was used as the loading control. c. Statistical analysis of the relative expression levels of Cxs in HCC tissues, peritumoral tissues, and normal liver tissues. ^**, P < 0.01; ^##, P < 0.01. d. Statistical analysis of the relative expression levels of Cx32 in peritumoral tissues and HCC tissues with different TNM stages. ^*, P < 0.05. e. Representative IHC staining of Cx32, Cx26 and Cx43 protein in normal liver tissues (left panels), peritumoral tissues (middle panels) and HCC tissues (right panels) (400×). Scale bars: 50 μm. f. Representative IHC staining of Cx32 in normal liver tissues, cirrhotic tissues and early and advanced HCC tissues (400×). Scale bars: 50 μm