Protective role of arnebin-1 in rats with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

Abstract

Objective To examine the effects of arnebin-1 on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) induced by a high-fat diet (HFD). Methods Male Sprague–Dawley rats were fed an HFD for 10 weeks and then treated with arnebin-1 at a dose of 5, 10 or 20 mg/kg/day by gavage for a further 12 weeks of a 22-week HFD. Peripheral blood and liver tissues were collected for biochemical and histopathological examination. The mechanisms of arnebin-1 on liver fibrosis and insulin resistance (IR) were determined by Western blotting and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Results Arnebin-1 treatment attenuated the increase of total cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase in serum and lipid accumulation in the livers of HFD-fed rats. Furthermore, arnebin-1 abrogated HFD-induced liver fibrosis and the increase of fibrotic biomarkers. The HFD-induced decrease of hepatic proliferator-activated receptor γ and pro-matrix-metalloproteinase (MMP)-9 levels and the increase of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1) levels were reversed after arnebin-1. Arnebin-1 attenuated IR through activating the insulin receptor substrate-1/Akt/mTOR signalling pathway. Conclusion This study demonstrated that arnebin-1 ameliorates NAFLD, in part, by attenuating hepatic fibrosis and IR, suggesting that arnebin-1 may be a therapeutic agent for NAFLD treatment.

Integrative proteomics and metabolomics explore the effect and mechanism of Qiyin granules on improving nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

“…Previous results from our laboratory ascertained that Qiyin demonstrates a substantial potential to alleviate the hepatic steatosis condition in rats with NAFLD, which was induced by the intervention of HFD. There is sufficient evidence that Qiyin possesses the capability to decrease CYP2E1, SREBP1 and SREBP2 protein expression levels in hepatocytes, thereby mitigating oxidative stress, ameliorating hepatocyte steatosis, and diminishing both inflammation and injury to the hepatocytes [ 17 , 18 ]. Previous clinical investigations have shown that the administration of this prescription confers not only a marked relief in clinical symptoms but also significantly regulates serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase (GPT), triglyceride (TG), cholesterol (TC), body mass index (BMI), and other related parameters.…”