1
|
Abdelghffar EAR, El-Nashar HAS, Fayez S, Obaid WA, Eldahshan OA. Ameliorative effect of oregano (Origanum vulgare) versus silymarin in experimentally induced hepatic encephalopathy. Sci Rep 2022; 12:17854. [PMID: 36284120 PMCID: PMC9596437 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-20412-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2022] [Accepted: 09/13/2022] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a deterioration of brain function in patients suffering from chronic liver disease, cirrhosis as a result of elevated blood ammonia and the production of pseudo-neurotransmitters. Herein, we investigated the chemical composition of hexane extract from Origanum vulgare (O. vulgare) leaves as well as its possible protective effects against thioacetamide (TAA)-induced HE in rats. GC-MS analysis of the extract revealed tentative identification of twenty-five compounds (82.93%), predominated by cholesten-3-one (27.30%), followed by γ-tocopherol (13.52%), α-tocopherol (5.01%), β-amyrin (5.24%) and α-amyrin (4.89%). Albino rats were distributed into seven groups (n = 7). G1 served as negative control; G2 and G3 served as controls treated with O. vulgare (100 and 200 mg/kg/p.o b.w, respectively); G4 served as TAA-positive control group (100 mg/kg/day/i.p., three alternative days per week for six weeks); G5, G6, and G7 served as TAA -induced HE rat model that received O. vulgare 100, O. vulgare 200, and silymarin (100 mg/kg of SILY, as standard drug), respectively. TAA showed depressive and anxiety-like behaviors in forced swimming test (FST) and reduction of cognitive score in elevated plus-maze test (EPMT) as well as impairment of locomotor and exploratory activities in open-field test (OFT). TAA caused a significant decline in body weight gain; however, the relative liver weight and brain water content were statistically increased. TAA-intoxicated rats showed significant increase of serum biomarker enzymes, proinflammatory cytokines, blood ammonia levels, brain serotonin, acetyl cholinesterase and cellular lipid peroxidation with significant decrease of brain dopamine, norepinephrine, antioxidant status. The hepatoprotective/neuro-protective activities of O. vulgare was found to be comparable with that of SILY in HE rats model. Where, treatment of TAA-intoxicated rats with O. vulgare attenuated anxiety, depressive-related behaviors, and reduced the biochemical changes in HE-induced by TAA. Therefore, O. vulgare could be an excellent hepato-/neuroprotective against hepatic injury and HE via improving the oxidative/inflammatory status through its antioxidant and neuro-modulatory properties and its effect is equal to that of SILY.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eman A. R. Abdelghffar
- grid.7269.a0000 0004 0621 1570Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Heba A. S. El-Nashar
- grid.7269.a0000 0004 0621 1570Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ain-Shams University, Cairo, Egypt ,grid.7269.a0000 0004 0621 1570Centre of Drug Discovery Research and Development, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Shaimaa Fayez
- grid.7269.a0000 0004 0621 1570Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ain-Shams University, Cairo, Egypt ,grid.7269.a0000 0004 0621 1570Centre of Drug Discovery Research and Development, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Wael A. Obaid
- grid.412892.40000 0004 1754 9358Department of Biology, College of Science, Taibah University, Al-Madīnah Al-Munawarah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Omayma A. Eldahshan
- grid.7269.a0000 0004 0621 1570Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ain-Shams University, Cairo, Egypt ,grid.7269.a0000 0004 0621 1570Centre of Drug Discovery Research and Development, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Sekine A, Fukuwatari T. Acute liver failure increases kynurenic acid production in rat brain via changes in tryptophan metabolism in the periphery. Neurosci Lett 2019; 701:14-19. [PMID: 30738081 DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2019.02.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2018] [Revised: 02/03/2019] [Accepted: 02/04/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
The tryptophan metabolite, kynurenic acid (KYNA), is a preferential antagonist of the α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and N-methyl-d-aspartic acid receptor at endogenous brain concentrations. Recent studies have suggested that increased brain KYNA levels are involved in psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and depression. Most of the brain kynurenine (KYN), the KYNA precursor, comes from the periphery, and the liver has a central role in the peripheral tryptophan metabolism. In this study, the effect of acute liver failure (ALF) on brain KYNA production and on the peripheral tryptophan metabolism was investigated in rats. ALF was induced by administration of the hepatotoxin, thioacetamide (TAA). Brain KYNA levels were increased by TAA-induced ALF, and these increases were consistent with KYN levels in the brain, serum and liver. These results suggest that the ALF-induced increase in serum KYN contributes to the increase in brain KYNA via elevated KYN uptake within the brain. This increase in serum KYN level can be caused by the changes in tryptophan-2,3-dioxygenase activity in the liver and the immune-related activation of indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase in extrahepatic tissues. These findings suggest that hepatic dysfunction may contribute to neurological and psychiatric diseases associated with increased KYNA levels.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Airi Sekine
- Department of Nutrition, School of Human Cultures, The University of Shiga Prefecture, 2500 Hassaka, Hikone, Shiga, 522-8533, Japan
| | - Tsutomu Fukuwatari
- Department of Nutrition, School of Human Cultures, The University of Shiga Prefecture, 2500 Hassaka, Hikone, Shiga, 522-8533, Japan.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Ding S, Yang J, Liu L, Ye Y, Wang X, Hu J, Chen B, Zhuge Q. Elevated dopamine induces minimal hepatic encephalopathy by activation of astrocytic NADPH oxidase and astrocytic protein tyrosine nitration. Int J Biochem Cell Biol 2014; 55:252-63. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biocel.2014.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2014] [Revised: 08/14/2014] [Accepted: 09/01/2014] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
|
4
|
Contributions of microdialysis to new alternative therapeutics for hepatic encephalopathy. Int J Mol Sci 2013; 14:16184-206. [PMID: 23921686 PMCID: PMC3759906 DOI: 10.3390/ijms140816184] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2013] [Revised: 07/24/2013] [Accepted: 07/29/2013] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a common complication of cirrhosis, of largely reversible impairment of brain function occurring in patients with acute or chronic liver failure or when the liver is bypassed by portosystemic shunts. The mechanisms causing this brain dysfunction are still largely unclear. The need to avoid complications caused by late diagnosis has attracted interest to understand the mechanisms underlying neuronal damage in order to find markers that will allow timely diagnosis and to propose new therapeutic alternatives to improve the care of patients. One of the experimental approaches to study HE is microdialysis; this technique allows evaluation of different chemical substances in several organs through the recollection of samples in specific places by semi-permeable membranes. In this review we will discuss the contributions of microdialysis in the understanding of the physiological alterations in human hepatic encephalopathy and experimental models and the studies to find novel alternative therapies for this disease.
Collapse
|
5
|
Abstract
Metabolic encephalopathy is an acute disturbance in cellular metabolism in the brain evoked by conditions of hypoxia, hypoglycaemia, oxidative stress and/or inflammation. It usually develops acutely or subacutely and is reversible if the systemic disorder is treated. If left untreated, however, metabolic encephalopathy may result in secondary structural damage to the brain. Most encephalopathies are present with neuropsychiatric symptoms, one in particular being depression. However, mood disorders are often co-morbid with cardiovascular, liver, kidney and endocrine disorders, while increasing evidence concurs that depression involves inflammatory and neurodegenerative processes. This would suggest that metabolic disturbances resembling encephalopathy may underscore the basic neuropathology of depression at a far deeper level than currently realized. Viewing depression as a form of encephalopathy, and exploiting knowledge gleaned from our understanding of the neurochemistry and treatment of metabolic encephalopathy, may assist in our understanding of the neurobiology of depression, but also in realizing new ideas in the pharmacotherapy of mood disorders.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Brian H Harvey
- Unit for Drug Research and Development, Division of Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Anderzhanova E, Saransaari P, Oja SS. Neuroprotective mechanisms of taurine in vivo. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2007; 583:377-87. [PMID: 17153623 DOI: 10.1007/978-0-387-33504-9_42] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/20/2023]
|
7
|
Anderzhanova E, Oja SS, Saransaari P, Albrecht J. Changes in the striatal extracellular levels of dopamine and dihydroxyphenylacetic acid evoked by ammonia and N-methyl-D-aspartate: modulation by taurine. Brain Res 2003; 977:290-3. [PMID: 12834890 DOI: 10.1016/s0006-8993(03)02777-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Acute hyperammonemia is associated with motor disturbances that are thought to involve striatal dopaminergic dysfunction. Discharge of striatal dopaminergic neurons is controlled by N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, the excessive activation of which contributes to ammonia neurotoxicity. Here we show that ammonium chloride ("ammonia", extracellular concentration 5 mM) or NMDA (1 mM), when directly administered to the rat striatum via a microdialysis probe, evoke a prompt accumulation of dopamine (DA) in the microdialysates. However, while ammonia increases, NMDA decreases, the extracellular dihydroxyphenylacetate (DOPAC) level. The results point to the NMDA receptor-mediated enhancement of DA release and increased DA metabolism as two independent ways by which ammonia affects the striatal dopaminergic system. Taurine (extracellular concentration 10 mM) attenuated the NMDA- and ammonia-evoked DA release and ammonia-induced accumulation of DOPAC, reflecting two different neuroprotective mechanisms of this amino acid.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elmira Anderzhanova
- Brain Research Center, University of Tampere Medical School, Tampere, Finland
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
8
|
Waśkiewicz J, Freśko I, Lenkiewicz A, Albrecht J. Reversible decrease of dopamine D2 receptor density in the striatum of rats with acute hepatic failure. Brain Res 2001; 900:143-5. [PMID: 11325357 DOI: 10.1016/s0006-8993(01)02280-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
The binding of a D2 receptor ligand, [3H]spiperone, was measured in striatal membranes derived from rats in which acute hepatic failure induced with thioacetamide (TAA) was associated with symptoms of hepatic encephalopathy (HE), and during recovery from HE. A 28% decrease of Bmax for the binding was measured in a symptomatic stage of HE, 1 day after TAA administration. The B(max) for [3H]spiperone binding was no longer different from control 7 days after TAA administration, when blood and brain biochemical correlates of HE were already absent. At 21 days after TAA administration, the B(max) was increased by 31% above the control level, consistent with other aspects of metabolic activation of the brain characteristic of the late recovery period from acute HE.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- J Waśkiewicz
- Laboratory of CNS Pathobiochemistry, Department of Neurochemistry, Medical Research Centre, Polish Academy of Sciences, Pawinskiego 5, 02-106, Warsaw, Poland
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
9
|
Abstract
Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) and portal-systemic encephalopathy (PSE) are the terms used interchangeably to describe a complex neuropsychiatric syndrome associated with acute or chronic hepatocellular failure, increased portal systemic shunting of blood, or both. Hepatic encephalopathy complicating acute liver failure is referred to as fulminant hepatic failure (FHF). The clinical manifestations of HE or PSE range from minimal changes in personality and motor activity, to overt deterioration of intellectual function, decreased consciousness and coma, and appear to reflect primarily a variable imbalance between excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmission. Pathogenic mechanisms that may be responsible for HE have been extensively investigated using animal models of HE, or cultures of CNS cells treated with neuroactive substances that have been implicated in HE. Of the many compounds that accumulate in the circulation as a consequence of impaired liver function, ammonia is considered to play an important role in the onset of HE. Acute ammonia neurotoxicity, which may be a cause of seizures in FHF, is excitotoxic in nature, being associated with increased synaptic release of glutamate (Glu), the major excitatory neurotransmitter of the brain, and subsequent overactivation of the ionotropic Glu receptors, mainly the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors. Hepatic encephalopathy complicating chronic liver failure appears to be associated with a shift in the balance between inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmission towards a net increase of inhibitory neurotransmission, as a consequence of at least two factors. The first is down-regulation of Glu receptors resulting in decreased glutamatergic tone. The down-regulation follows excessive extrasynaptic accumulation of Glu resulting from its impaired re-uptake into nerve endings and astrocytes. Liver failure inactivates the Glu transporter GLT-1 in astrocytes. The second factor is an increase in inhibitory neurotransmission by gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) due to (a) increased brain levels of natural benzodiazepines; (b) increased availability of GABA at GABA-A receptors, due to enhanced synaptic release of the amino acid; (c) direct interaction of modestly increased levels of ammonia with the GABA-A-benzodiazepine receptor complex; and (d) ammonia-induced up-regulation of astrocytic peripheral benzodiazepine receptors (PBZR). Brain ammonia is metabolised in astrocytes to glutamine (Gln), an osmolyte, and increased Gln accumulation in these cells may contribute to cytotoxic brain edema, which often complicates FHF. Glutamine efflux from the brain is an event that facilitates plasma-to-brain transport of aromatic amino acids. Tryptophan and tyrosine are direct precursors of the aminergic inhibitory neurotransmitters, serotonin and dopamine, respectively. Changes in serotonin and dopamine and their receptors may contribute to some of the motor manifestations of HE. Finally, oxindole, a recently discovered tryptophan metabolite with strong sedative and hypotensive properties, has been shown to accumulate in cirrhotic patients and animal models of HE.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- J Albrecht
- Department of Neurotoxicology, Medical Research Centre, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw.
| | | |
Collapse
|