Serum superoxide dismutase activity in acute and chronic paediatric liver diseases

The effect of Crocin on TFAM and PGC-1α expression and Catalase and Superoxide dismutase activities following cholestasis-induced neuroinflammation in the striatum of male Wistar rats

Bile secretion is a physiological function that is disrupted following Bile Duct Ligation (BDL) and induces cholestasis. Cholestasis is a bile flow reduction that induces apoptosis, oxidative stress, and inflammation, and alters the expression of genes. Evidence shows the relationship between cholestasis and neuroinflammation. Cholestasis via attenuating mitochondrial biogenesis and anti-oxidant activity can induce neuroinflammation and apoptosis. Mitochondrial transcriptional factor A (TFAM) and Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator-1α (PGC-1α) are involved in mitochondrial biogenesis, and TFAM, PGC-1α, Catalase (CAT), and Superoxide dismutase (SOD) have a role in upregulating antioxidant pathways. On the other hand, many studies have shown the neuroprotective effects of Crocin, the water-soluble carotenoid of Saffron (Crocus sativus L.). In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of Crocin on the level of TFAM, PGC-1α, CAT, and SOD following cholestasis-induced neuroinflammation in the rat's striatum. Cholestasis was induced by BDL surgery and administration of Crocin was intraperitoneal, at the dose of 30 mg/kg every day, 24 h after BDL surgery up to thirty days. The results showed that TFAM, PGC-1α, and SOD were decreased following cholestasis; while, CAT was increased. In addition, Crocin restored the effects of cholestasis on the level of TFAM, PGC-1α, and SOD. In conclusion, Crocin may have improvement effects on cholestasis-induced neuroinflammation in the rat's striatum.

Paeonol alleviates lipopolysaccharide‑induced hepatocytes injury through alteration of mitochondrial function and NF‑κB translocation

Sepsis is a severe disease, with high mortality. Permanent organ damage caused by sepsis reduces the quality of life of surviving patients. The liver is an easily damaged organ in sepsis and sepsis-associated liver injury foretells a poor prognosis. Unfortunately, there are no effective treatments or drugs to solve this problem. Therefore, strategies or novel drugs are urgently required to protect against liver dysfunction in sepsis. In the present study, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was used to establish a model of liver injury in vitro. The data demonstrated that pretreatment of L02 human normal hepatocytes with paeonol (PAE) alleviated LPS-induced cell injury and decreased the levels of alanine aminotransferase and aspartate transaminase, indicating a protective effect of PAE. Further experiments demonstrated that PAE increased LPS-decreased L02 cell viability, the levels of superoxide dismutase and Bcl-2 expression. PAE decreased LPS-increased cell apoptosis, intracellular reactive oxygen species and the expression levels of Bax and cleaved-caspase-3. PAE decreased LPS-promoted mitochondrial depolarization and nuclear translocation of NF-κB. In conclusion, PAE alleviated LPS-induced liver injury via alteration of mitochondrial function and NF-κB translocation. Therefore, PAE has potential for the treatment of sepsis.

Estrogen-Related Receptor γ Agonist DY131 Ameliorates Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Acute Liver Injury

Sepsis-associated liver dysfunction remains a challenge in clinical practice with high mortality and limited specific therapies. DY131 is a pharmacological agonist of the orphan receptor estrogen-related receptor (ERR) γ which plays a crucial role in regulating energy generation, oxidative metabolism, cell apoptosis, inflammatory responses, etc. However, its role in acute liver injury is unknown. In this study, we evaluated the effect of DY131 on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced liver injury. Mice were pretreated with DY131 through intraperitoneal injection at a dose of 5 mg/kg/day for 3 days prior to LPS challenge (10 mg/kg). 24 h later, they were anesthetized and sacrificed. Blood and liver tissues were collected for further studies. In a separate experiment, mice were treated with saline (vehicle) or DY131 for 3 days to evaluate the toxicity of DY131. We found that ERRγ was downregulated in the liver tissues from LPS-treated mice. Pretreatment with DY131 ameliorated LPS-induced liver injury as demonstrated by reduced liver enzyme release (ALT, AST, and LDH), improved liver morphological damage, and attenuated oxidative stress, inflammation and apoptosis. Meanwhile, DY131 had no significant side effects on hepatic and renal functions in mice. Finally, transcriptomics analysis revealed that the dysregulated pathways associated with inflammation and metabolism were significantly reversed by DY131 in LPS-treated mice, providing more evidence in favor of the protective effect of DY131 against LPS-induced liver injury. Altogether, these findings highlighted the protective effect of DY131 on LPS-induced hepatotoxicity possibly via suppressing oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis.

Perioperative reactive oxygen species in infants with biliary atresia: A retrospective observational study

Biliary atresia (BA) is a devastating cholestatic disorder of infants that presents during the first several months after birth due to an idiopathic obstruction to the bile flow. Without prompt diagnosis, Kasai portoenterostomy, and deliberate follow-ups, the resulting cholestasis leads to progressive hepatic failure. Oxidative stress is an abnormal phenomenon inside cells or tissues caused by a disturbance in the reactive oxygen species (ROS). We aimed to measure perioperative ROS in BA patients.Data are presented as median (25th, 75th percentiles). We evaluated 15 BA patients (age 55 [48, 69] days) and measured ROS; serum superoxide dismutase (SOD), urinary 8-iso prostaglandin F2α (8-iso-PGF2α) and 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) preoperatively and 30 days later to compare values with serum liver function tests and histologic grades of liver cholestasis. For compared BA patients, 4 normal subjects as control group (age 55 [27, 75] days) measured ROS and serum liver function tests.In BA patients, the preoperative serum SOD was 6.1 IU/mL (4.7, 7.2), urinary 8-iso-PGF2α was 1969 pg/mg Cre (1697, 2374), and urinary 8-OHdG was 37.1 ng/mg Cre (33.1, 53.7). At the postoperative day 30, the serum SOD was 5.2 IU/mL (4.2, 6.7), urinary 8-iso-PGF2α was 1761 pg/mg Cre (1256, 3036), and urinary 8-OHdG was 42.1 ng/mg Cre (29.65, 72.64). In ROS, there were no significant differences between the 2 periods. In control group, urinary 8-iso-PGF2α was significantly lower than that in preoperative BA patient group. However, other ROS were not significant differences between control group and BA patient group. The concentration of urinary 8-iso-PGF2α was positively correlated with total bilirubin and direct bilirubin levels (preoperatively: r = 0.6921, P = .0042 and r = 0.6639, P = .007, postoperatively: r = 0.6036, P = .0172 and r = 0.6464, P = .0092, respectively). The preoperative ROS were not correlated with histologic grades of liver cholestasis. Various factors such as liver inflammation, lipid malabsorption, and tissue disorders due to jaundice might affect the antioxidant activity and elevated urinary 8-iso-PGF2α. However, at least until 30 days later, urinary 8-OHdG as oxidative DNA damage might persist after the operation whether the cholestasis improved or not.

Hepatoprotective and Anti-Oxidative Effects of Total Flavonoids From Qu Zhi Qiao (Fruit of Citrus Paradisi cv.Changshanhuyou) on Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis In Vivo and In Vitro Through Nrf2-ARE Signaling Pathway

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is a liver disease defined as the dynamic condition of hepatocellular injury during the progress of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Total flavonoids from the dry and immature fruits of Citrus Paradisi cv.Changshanhuyou (accepted species name: Citrus × aurantium L) (Qu Zhi Qiao, QZQ) are purified and named TFCH. This study was purposed to investigate and analyze the effect of TFCH on NASH model through Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2)- antioxidant response elements pathway in vivo and in vitro. In vivo study was performed using male C57BL/6 mice fed with high fat diet 16 weeks for NASH model. After 7-week modeling, mice in TFCH-treated group were daily treated with intragastric administration of TFCH at 25 mg/kg, 50 mg/kg, 200 mg/kg, respectively, for successive 8 weeks. Histopathological and immunohistochemical analyses were conducted for evaluating severity of NASH-mice model and the effect of TFCH treatment. In vitro experiment was performed by using human LX-2 cells and cultured with Free fatty acid (FFA) (Oleic acid: palmitic: l: 0.5 mmol/L) for 24 h and then treated with TFCH at different concentrations (0, 25, 50, 100, 200 mg/ml) for 6 h,12 h, and 24 h. Anti-apoptosis effect of TFCH on LX-2 cells cultured with FFA was revealed by the CCK-8 assay. Lipid parameters and oxidative stress markers were measured in vivo and in vitro, results showed that TFCH dose-dependently and greatly increased the antioxidant ability and reduced the oxidative damage in NASH model. The protein expression of Nrf2 and the downstream target genes in mice liver and human LX-2 cells were tested by Western blot analysis to investigate the possible molecular mechanisms of TFCH. Our results indicated that TFCH up-regulated protein expression of these genes and have the significant influence in activating the Nrf2-ARE signaling pathway. This study shows Nrf2-ARE signaling pathway may provide novel therapeutic opportunities for NASH therapy in the future.