This hypothesis is consistent with a role for cysteine cathepsins in the activation of NF-κB in APCs, as we have recently described for several cell types, among them primary hepatic cells, such as hepatocytes, HSCs, and KCs, and in different cell lines such as Hep3B cells (a human hepatoma cell line), LX2 cells (human HSCs), and murine RAW264.7 macrophages (3). This evidence concerns the gene TBCE and hepatocellular carcinoma.