Acupuncture Combined with Curcumin Disrupts Platelet-Derived Growth Factor β Receptor/Extracellular Signal-Regulated Kinase Signalling and Stimulates Extracellular Matrix Degradation in Carbon Tetrachloride-Induced Hepatic Fibrosis in Rats

Abstract

Background Acupuncture treatment has been increasingly used to treat chronic liver diseases. We previously reported that acupuncture combined with curcumin, a natural antifibrotic compound, could remarkably attenuate liver fibrosis in chemically intoxicated rats, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are poorly understood. The present study was aimed at investigating the effects of acupuncture combined with curcumin on plateletderived growth factor (PDGF) signalling and extracellular matrix (ECM) regulation in the fibrotic liver. Methods A total of 60 Sprague-Dawley male rats were randomly divided into control, model, sham, acupuncture, curcumin and combination treatment groups. During the establishment of fibrosis using carbon tetrachloride (CCl 4 ), acupuncture at LR3, LR14, BL18 and ST36 and/or curcumin treatment by mouth were performed simultaneously. After treatment, serum PDGF levels were measured. Protein and mRNA expression of key effectors in PDGF pathway and fibrinolysis in the liver was determined.

Interactive Effects of Exhaustive Exercise Training and Curcumin Supplementation on PDGF-BB and TGF-β1 Gene Expressions in Alcoholic Rats

“…The PDGF transports its signals through PDGF receptors and cascades of mitogenactivated protein kinases (MAPK) downstream, including ERK-MAPK, JNK-MAPK (Jun aminoterminal kinase) and P38-MAPK. Therefore, decreases in PDGF can interrupt this cascade and become an effective agent for the improvement of hepatic fibrosis (20). Similar to the present study, Fu et al (2008) have demonstrated that curcumin significantly decreases expression of PDGF-BB and TGF-β1 genes and consequently protects liver tissues against injuries.…”

“…Curcumin may protect liver against oxidative stress resulted from ethanol use (19). Studies have shown that curcumin supplement with acupuncture cause significant decreases in PDGF-BB in rats (20). Regarding effects of curcumin, it has been reported that 8-week use of curcumin causes significant decreases in TGF-β1 gene expression (21).…”

Hepatoprotective Effects of Chinese Medicinal Herbs: A Focus on Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Oxidative Activities

“…Moreover, curcumin acts on liver injuries by targeting multiple sites, for example platelet-derived growth factor-β receptor (PDGF-βR) [ 301 ], tissue growth factor β (TGFβ) [ 302 , 303 ], toll-like receptors (TLRs) [ 304 ], matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) [ 301 , 305 ], peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARc) [ 305 ], apoptotic pathway [ 303 , 306 ] microRNAs [ 307 ], and inflammatory cytokines [ 304 , 305 , 308 , 309 ].…”

Targeting Hepatic Stellate Cells for the Treatment of Liver Fibrosis by Natural Products: Is It the Dawning of a New Era?

“…There are many studies proving the effect of curcumin on HSCs, and this has been a potential therapeutic approach to be researched. There are reported evidences that TGFb (Reyes-Gordillo et al, 2008), PDGFRb, serum PDGF, CTGF (Zhang et al, 2012), SMAD2-3 (Yao et al, 2012), TNFa (Tu et al, 2012), matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) (Morsy et al, 2012), TLRs (Tu et al, 2012), and some inflammatory cytokines (Wu et al, 2010;Bassiouny et al, 2011) are targeted and attenuated.…”