CTSB and Hepatic fibrosis: These proteins include STAT3, MAP2K1, ALDOA (associated with hypoxic metabolism), CTSB (linked to the autophagy pathway strongly connected to liver fibrosis), vacuolar protein sorting family proteins (associated with the endocytosis pathway), and the actin skeleton-related proteins CDC42, PFN1, and CFL1 (key molecules strongly associated with liver fibrosis) (48, 52, 53).