Effect of limonin on liver fibrosis in rats and preliminary exploration of its mechanism
- VernacularTitle:柠檬苦素对大鼠肝纤维化的影响及机制初探
- Author:
Yuhong XIAO
1
;
Zhenxiang AN
2
Author Information
1. The First Clinical Medical College，Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine，Guiyang 550002，China
2. Dept. of Gastroenterology，the First Affiliated Hospital of Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine，Guiyang 550001，China
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
limonin;
liver fibrosis;
epithelial-mesenchymal
- From:
China Pharmacy
2022;33(24):2968-2972
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
OBJECTIVE To explore the effect and mechanism of limonin on liver fibrosis in rats. METHODS Forty-two SD male rats were randomly divided into normal group， model group， positive control group （colchicine， 0.1 mg/kg）， low-dose group of limonin （12.5 mg/kg） and high-dose group of limonin （50 mg/kg）， with 9 rats in normal group and model group， and 8 rats in other groups. Except for normal group， the model of liver fibrosis was established by carbon tetrachloride. After modeling， normal group and model group were given distilled water intragastrically， and administration groups were given relevant medicine intragastrically，once a day，for consecutive 4 weeks. After the last medication， the serum contents of alanine aminotransferase （ALT）， aspartate aminotransferase （AST）， hyaluronic acid （HA） and laminin （LN） in rats were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） method. HE and Masson staining were used to observe the pathological changes and fibrotic change of liver tissue. Western blot assay was used to detect the protein expressions of protein kinase B （Akt）， phosphorylated-protein kinase B （p-Akt）， E-cadherin and vimentin in liver tissue； ratio of p-Akt/Akt was calculated. RESULTS Compared normal group， the serum contents of ALT， AST， HA and LN in rats were all increased significantly in model group （P＜0.01）； HE and Masson staining showed that a large number of fibrous tissue hyperplasia， protein expressions of Akt， p-Akt and vimentin as well as p-Akt/ Akt ratio in liver tissue were significantly increased （P＜0.01）， while E-cadherin protein expression was significantly decreased （P＜0.01）. Compared with model group， the degree of fibrosis hyperplasia in liver tissue was relieved in high-dose group and low- dose group of limonin， and other indexes were all reversed significantly except for LN and E-cadherin in the low-dose group of limonin （P＜0.01 or P＜0.05）. CONCLUSIONS Limonin can improve liver fibrosis in rats， the mechanism of which may be related to the inhibition of Akt phosphorylation and reversal of epithelial-mesenchymal transition process.
