To prove the above result, the Notch pathway was inhibited in the HNF-1β-overexpressed HCC cell lines by treatment with N-[N-(3,5-difluorophenacetyl)–l–alanyl]–S-phenylglycine t-butyl ester (DAPT), a γ-secretase inhibitor, which inhibits the Notch pathway, or shRNA to silence Notch1, and then, the markers of stemness were measured and compared with those of the empty vector–transfected cells (Fig. 4C,D and Supplemental Fig. 3C,D). The gene discussed is NOTCH1; the disease is hepatocellular carcinoma.