**2.2 Heparanase in liver fibrosis**

In their book chapter, Mazola et al. suggest that the interplay between heparanase and components of the immune and the inflammatory responses activate recruitment, proliferation, and activation of myofibroblasts, the main cell types responsible for deposition of fibrous proteins in the ECM [73]. In a study on mice with chronic Ccl4-mediated chronic induction of liver fibrosis, increased heparanase expression was demonstrated, which was mainly co-localized with macrophages in necro-inflammatory areas, where it seems that heparanase plays a key role in the macrophage-mediated activation of HSCs [74]. Further studies supported additional evidence for the involvement of heparanase in fibrotic processes in different body organs, including liver fibrosis [75].
