ALB and hepatocellular carcinoma: To explore cellular mechanisms for HsA-mediated apoptosis in HCC cells, HCC cells were pre-incubated with pan-caspase inhibitor (e.g., Z-VAD-FMK (Z-VAD)) or antioxidants (e.g., N-acetylcysteine (NAC)) and reduced glutathione (GSH)) for 1 h prior to HsA treatment.