Culture and establishment of self-renewing human liver 3D organoids with high uric acid for screening antihyperuricemic functional compounds

Soy Peptide Supplementation Mitigates Undernutrition through Reprogramming Hepatic Metabolism in a Novel Undernourished Non-Human Primate Model

In spite of recent advances in the field of undernutrition, current dietary therapy relying on the supply of high protein high calorie formulas is still plagued with transient recovery of impaired organs resulting in significant relapse of cases. This is partly attributed to the inadequacy of current research models in recapitulating clinical undernutrition for mechanistic exploration. Using 1636 Macaca fascicularis monkeys, a human-relevant criterion for determining undernutrition weight-for-age z-score (WAZ), with a cutoff point of ≤ -1.83 is established as the benchmark for identifying undernourished nonhuman primates (U-NHPs). In U-NHPs, pathological anomalies in multi-organs are revealed. In particular, severe dysregulation of hepatic lipid metabolism characterized by impaired fatty acid oxidation due to mitochondria dysfunction, but unlikely peroxisome disorder, is identified as the anchor metabolic aberration in U-NHPs. Mitochondria dysfunction is typified by reduced mito-number, accumulated long-chain fatty acids, and disruption of OXPHOS complexes. Soy peptide-treated U-NHPs increase in WAZ scores, in addition to attenuated mitochondria dysfunction and restored OXPHOS complex levels. Herein, innovative criteria for identifying U-NHPs are developed, and unknown molecular mechanisms of undernutrition are revealed hitherto, and it is further proved that soypeptide supplementation reprogramed mitochondrial function to re-establish lipid metabolism balance and mitigated undernutrition.

Human Hepatobiliary Organoids: Recent Advances in Drug Toxicity Verification and Drug Screening

Many drug and therapeutic modalities have emerged over the past few years. However, successful commercialization is dependent on their safety and efficacy evaluations. Several preclinical models are available for drug-screening and safety evaluations, including cellular- and molecular-level models, tissue and organoid models, and animal models. Organoids are three-dimensional cell cultures derived from primary tissues or stem cells that are structurally and functionally similar to the original organs and can self-renew, and they are used to establish various disease models. Human hepatobiliary organoids have been used to study the pathogenesis of diseases, such as hepatitis, liver fibrosis, hepatocellular carcinoma, primary sclerosing cholangitis and biliary tract cancer, as they retain the physiological and histological characteristics of the liver and bile ducts. Here, we review recent research progress in validating drug toxicity, drug screening and personalized therapy for hepatobiliary-related diseases using human hepatobiliary organoid models, discuss the challenges encountered in current research and evaluate the possible solutions.

Dispelling Dampness, Relieving Turbidity and Dredging Collaterals Decoction, Attenuates Potassium Oxonate-Induced Hyperuricemia in Rat Models

Purpose

Dispelling dampness, relieving turbidity and dredging collaterals decoction (DED), is a traditional Chinese medicine used in the treatment of hyperuricemia. We aimed to explore the effect and mechanism of DED in the treatment of hyperuricemia.

Methods

The effects of DED (9.48, 4.74, and 2.37 g/kg/d) on potassium oxonate (750 mg/kg/d)-induced hyperuricemia in rats were evaluated by serum uric acid (UA), creatinine (CRE), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), and renal pathological changes. Network pharmacology was used to identify the effective components and targets of DED, and the key targets and signaling pathways for its effects on hyperuricemia were screened. Molecular docking was used to predict the action of DED. H&E, immunohistochemistry, WB, and PCR were used to validate the network pharmacology results.

Results

DED can effectively alleviate hyperuricemia, inhibit UA, CRE, BUN, and xanthine oxidase (XOD) activity, and reduce renal inflammatory cell infiltration and glomerular atrophy. The experiment identified 27 potential targets of DED for hyperuricemia, involving 9 components: wogonin, stigmasterol 3-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside, 3β-acetoxyatractylone, beta-sitosterol, stigmasterol, diosgenin, naringenin, astilbin, and quercetin. DED can relieve hyperuricemia mainly by inhibiting RAGE, HMGB1, IL17R, and phospho-TAK1, and by regulating the AGE-RAGE and IL-17 signaling pathways.

Conclusion

DED can alleviate hyperuricemia by inhibiting XOD activity and suppressing renal cell apoptosis and inflammation via the AGE-RAGE signaling pathway and IL-17 signaling pathway. This study provides a theoretical basis for the clinical application of DED.

Liver organoids: established tools for disease modeling and drug development

In the past decade, liver organoids have evolved rapidly as valuable research tools, providing novel insights into almost all types of liver diseases, including monogenic liver diseases, alcohol-associated liver disease, metabolic-associated fatty liver disease, various types of (viral) hepatitis, and liver cancers. Liver organoids in part mimic the microphysiology of the human liver and fill a gap in high-fidelity liver disease models to a certain extent. They hold great promise to elucidate the pathogenic mechanism of a diversity of liver diseases and play a crucial role in drug development. Moreover, it is challenging but opportunistic to apply liver organoids for tailored therapies of various liver diseases. The establishment, applications, and challenges of different types of liver organoids, for example, derived from embryonic, adult, or induced pluripotent stem cells, to model different liver diseases, are presented in this review.