TGFB1 and Hepatic fibrosis: In a murine model of liver fibrosis, Lee and colleagues reported that CD133 was upregulated in the plasma membrane of fibrotic liver hepatocytes and could interact via its IC1 domain with the N-terminal domain of Smad7 [372], a feedback inhibitor of TGF-β signaling that prevents the TGF-β-induced phosphorylation of Smad2/3 [373, 374].