Beneficial Effects of Fermented Green Tea Extract in a Rat Model of Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis

Abstract

Summary Oxidative stress is frequently considered as a central mechanism of hepatocellular injury in non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of fermented green tea extracts (FGTE) on NASH. Rats were fed a choline-deficient high-fat diet for 4 weeks to nutritionally generate fatty livers. NASH was induced chemically by oxidative stress using repeated intraperitoneal injections of nitrite. Rats with NASH developed steatohepatitis and liver fibrosis after 6-week of such treatment. At 10 weeks, blood and liver samples were collected from anesthetized animals and assessed for extent of OS injury and effects of FGTE, by biochemical, histological and histochemical analyses. FGTE reduced serum levels of liver enzymes, lipid peroxidation and production of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species. In addition, FGTE showed inhibition of progressions of cirrhosis. Our findings suggest that our FGTE have strong radical scavenging activity and may be beneficial in the prevention of NASH progression.

Structure-based design, synthesis, and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)-preventive effect of phenylpropanoic acid peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) α-selective agonists

“…18,19 Although the pathogenesis of NASH has not yet been fully elucidated, the 'two-hit' theory is widely accepted. 20 The first hit is the accumulation of fatty acids in the liver to cause steatosis.…”

Effects of Docosahexaenoic Acid in an Experimental Rat Model of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis

“…Alanine aminotransferase ALT and aspartate aminotransferase AST activities in plasma were measured using commercial enzyme assay kits Wako 3,4 . Plasma alkaline phosphatase ALP levels and choline esterase ChE were determined using standard assays 3, 4 .…”

GINSENG, GREEN TEA OR FIBRATE: valid options for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis prevention?

“…Yet, there has been reported that high-fat diet may prevent the development of histologic evidence of NASH, of which fibrosis is a major components (18) . Similarly, Nakamoto and colleagues (26) , in a four week experimental study, failed to induce fibrosis associated with high-fat diet alone in rats.…”

“…It is thus expected to act on the first phase of the metabolic process characterized by increased intake of fatty acids to the liver. Since oxidative stress plays a central role in the development of steatohepatitis, Camellia sinensis was selected as a comparative natural product due to antioxidant effects of its catechins (26) . The positive control selected was a synthetic product, bezafibrate, wich is an agonist of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR) with lipid-lowering effects resulting from increased beta-oxidation of fat in the liver while reducing oxidative stress and directly preventing inflammation (27) .…”