Bifidobacterium lactis TY-S01 protects against alcoholic liver injury in mice by regulating intestinal barrier function and gut microbiota

Lactobacillus plantarum and Bifidobacterium longum Alleviate Liver Injury and Fibrosis in Mice by Regulating NF-κB and AMPK Signaling

In a preliminary study, live biotherapeutic products (LBPs) Lactobacillus plantarum LC27 and Bifidobacterium longum LC67 inhibited the secretion of alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) in LPS-stimulated HepG2 cells, while Escherichia coli K1 (Ec) increased ALT and ALT secretion. Therefore, we examined the effects of LC27 and LC67 on LPS-induced liver injury and fibrosis in mice and the correlation between their biomarkers in cell and animal experiments. Orally administered LC27 or LC67 significantly decreased blood ALT, AST, γ-glutamyl transferase (γGTP), TNF-α, triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TCh), total bile acid, and LPS levels, liver TNF-α, toll-like receptor-4 gene (Tlr4), α-smooth muscle actin (αSMA), and collagen-1 expression and αSMA+GFAP+ and NF-κB+F4/80+ cell populations, and colonic Tlr4, TNF-α, and IL-6 expression and NF-κB-positive cell population in LPS-treated mice. Furthermore, they increased AMPKa phosphorylation in the liver and colon. However, Ec increased the expression of TNF-α and IL-6 in blood, liver, and colon. The suppression of LPS-stimulated ALT and AST secretion in HepG2 cells by LBPs was positively correlated with their ameliorating effects on LPS-induced blood γGTP, ALT, and AST levels and liver αSMA and collagen-1 expression in mice. Based on these findings, LC27 and LC67 may improve liver injury and fibrosis by regulating NF-κB and AMPK signaling pathway and a protocol that can assay the inhibitory activity of LBPs on LPS-induced ALT and AST secretion in HepG2 may be useful for guessing their antihepatitic effects in the in vivo experiments.

Mefentrifluconazole exposure disrupted hepatic lipid metabolism disorder tightly associated with gut barrier function abnormal in mice

Mefentrifluconazole (MFZ) is an azole fungicide that is placed in agriculture for the control of fungal hazards. However, due to their non-biodegradability, azole fungicides can accumulate in plants, animals, and the environment, thus becoming a major health concern worldwide. In this study, we exposed 7-week-old C57BL/6 mice to 10, 30, and 100 mg/kg of MFZ for 28 d to assess the toxic effects of MFZ on the liver and gut tissues of the mice. Histopathological, biochemical indexes, and transcriptomic analyses revealed that MFZ exposure disrupted the liver structure and hepatic lipid metabolism as well as damaged gut barrier function and promoted inflammation in mice. Moreover, 16S rRNA sequencing demonstrated that MFZ exposure significantly increased the abundance of patescibacteria at the generic level. Also, MFZ exposure increased the abundance of bacterial genera associated with inhibition of glycolipid metabolism. These results suggested that the disruption of liver lipid metabolism caused by MFZ exposure may be caused by changes in gut microbiota function. This study provided a new disease occurrence study for risk assessment of MFZ and strengthened the focus on some novel fungicides.