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Chang L, Li M, Zhu Y, Fu Y, Li T, Zhao J, Lv Y, Zhang C, Zhu M, Li Z, Zhao W. Omics-based investigation of pathological liver injury induced by Echinococcus multilocularis infection in mice. Acta Trop 2024; 250:107083. [PMID: 38070722 DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2023.107083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2023] [Revised: 11/10/2023] [Accepted: 11/25/2023] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Alveolar echinococcosis (AE) can cause severe liver injury and be fatal if left untreated. Currently, there are no effective therapeutic options for AE-induced liver injury. Therefore, by exploring the changes of gene proteins in mice with damaged liver, we attempted to identify the key molecules of liver damage, and provide data that will enable the development of drugs targeting hepatic AE. METHODS BALB/c mice were inoculated with protoscoleces via the hepatic portal vein. Three months later, B-ultrasound examination and Hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) staining were used to confirm liver damage in mice. RNA sequencing and Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) were used to screen differentially expressed molecules associated with liver damage through bioinformatics, and Quantitative Real-Time PCR (qRT-PCR) was used to verify their expression. RESULTS B-ultrasound examination showed liver lesions in the infected group, and H&E staining showed liver inflammation, fibrosis and liver necrosis. RNA sequencing and LC-MS results showed changes in the levels of more than 1000 genes and proteins, with upregulation of immune and inflammation pathways. By contrast, the downregulated genes and proteins were mostly involved in various metabolic reactions. Correlation analysis was conducted between the transcriptome data and proteome data. The results revealed 240 differentially expressed genes, of which 192 were upregulated, and 48 were downregulated. Many of these genes were involved in metabolic reactions, such as Catalase (Cat), fatty acid synthase (Fasn), and IL-16 genes, which may have relevance to liver injury. The results of qRT-PCR were consistent with those of bioinformatics analysis. CONCLUSIONS The mechanisms of liver injury in mice infected with Echinococcus multilocularis are complex, involving abnormal metabolism, oxidative stress, inflammatory response, and many other factors. This study provides the data for preliminary exploration for the development of targeted therapies against AE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liangliang Chang
- School of Basic Medicine, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China; Ningxia Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China
| | - Ming Li
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China; Ningxia Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China
| | - Yazhou Zhu
- School of Basic Medicine, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China; Ningxia Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China
| | - Yong Fu
- Qinghai University, Xining Qinghai China
| | - Tao Li
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China; Ningxia Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China
| | - Jiaqing Zhao
- Ningxia Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China
| | - Yongxue Lv
- School of Basic Medicine, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China; Ningxia Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China
| | - Cuiying Zhang
- School of Basic Medicine, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China; Ningxia Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China
| | - Mingxing Zhu
- Ningxia Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China
| | - Zihua Li
- Ningxia Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China
| | - Wei Zhao
- School of Basic Medicine, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China; Ningxia Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan Ningxia China.
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Cao S, Wang D, Wu Y, Zhang J, Pu L, Luo X, Zhang X, Sun X, Zheng Y, Wang S, Guo X. mmu-miRNA-342-3p promotes hepatic stellate cell activation and hepatic fibrosis induced by Echinococcus multilocularis infection via targeting Zbtb7a. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2023; 17:e0011520. [PMID: 37490505 PMCID: PMC10403128 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0011520] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2022] [Accepted: 07/08/2023] [Indexed: 07/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Liver fibrosis is one of the histopathological characters during Echinococcus multilocularis infection. The activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) is a key event in the development of liver fibrosis. However, the molecular mechanism of HSC activation in the E. multilocularis infection-induced liver fibrosis remains largely unclear. Here, we reported that mmu-miR-342-3p was most dominantly expressed in HSCs and was upregulated in the HSCs in response to E. multilocularis infection. We further showed that mmu-miR-342-3p was able to bind to the 3' UTR of the Zbtb7a gene and regulated its expression. Moreover, mmu-miR-342-3p expression was negatively correlated with its target gene Zbtb7a in HSCs during E. multilocularis infection. Knockdown of mmu-miR-342-3p promoted the expression of Gfap in the activated HSCs in vitro. In the E. multilocularis-infected mice, knockdown of mmu-miR-342-3p suppressed the expression of α-Sma, Col1α1, and TGF-β but promoted the expression of Gfap. Therefore, mmu-miR-342-3p is a key regulator for activation of HSCs, and inhibiting mmu-miR-342-3p to promote Zbtb7a-mediated TGF-β signaling in activated HSCs could be a novel strategy to treat liver fibrosis induced by E. multilocularis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shanling Cao
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Dexian Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Yixuan Wu
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Junmei Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Lixia Pu
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Xuenong Luo
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Xueyong Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
- Qinghai Academy of Animal Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Qinghai University, Xining P. R. China
| | - Xiaolin Sun
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Yadong Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Applied Technology on Green-Eco-Healthy Animal Husbandry of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Animal Health Inspection & Internet Technology, Zhejiang International Science and Technology Cooperation Base for Veterinary Medicine and Health Management, China-Australia Joint Laboratory for Animal Health Big Data Analytics, College of Animal Science and Technology & College of Veterinary Medicine of Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Shuai Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, College of Veterinary Medicine, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Xiaola Guo
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
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