Iron depletion attenuates steatosis in a mouse model of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: Role of iron-dependent pathways.
Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Basis Dis 2021;
1867:166142. [PMID:
33839281 DOI:
10.1016/j.bbadis.2021.166142]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2020] [Revised: 03/23/2021] [Accepted: 04/01/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND & AIMS
Iron has been proposed as influencing the progression of liver disease in subjects with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). We have previously shown that, in the Hfe-/- mouse model of hemochromatosis, feeding of a high-calorie diet (HCD) leads to increased liver injury. In this study we investigated whether the feeding of an iron deficient/HCD to Hfe-/- mice influenced the development of NAFLD.
METHODS
Liver histology was assessed in Hfe-/- mice fed a standard iron-containing or iron-deficient diet plus or minus a HCD. Hepatic iron concentration, serum transferrin saturation and free fatty acid were measured. Expression of genes implicated in iron regulation and fatty liver disease was determined by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR).
RESULTS
Standard iron/HCD-fed mice developed severe steatosis whereas NAS score was reduced in mice fed iron-deficient HCD. Mice fed iron-deficient HCD had lower liver weights, lower transferrin saturation and decreased ferroportin and hepcidin gene expression than HCD-fed mice. Serum non-esterified fatty acids were increased in iron-deficient HCD-fed mice compared with standard iron HCD. Expression analysis indicated that genes involved in fatty-acid binding and mTOR pathways were regulated by iron depletion.
CONCLUSIONS
Our results indicate that decreasing iron intake attenuates the development of steatosis resulting from a high calorie diet. These results also suggest that human studies of agents that modify iron balance in patients with NAFLD should be revisited.
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