Fuzheng Huayu inhibits carbon tetrachloride-induced liver fibrosis in mice through activating hepatic NK cells

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• 作者：Qi Cheng^a ; Ning Li^a ; Mingquan Chen^a ; Jianming Zheng^a ; Zhiping Qian^b ; Xinyu Wang^a ; Chong Huang^a ; Qian Li^a ; Qingxia Lin^a ; Guangfeng Shi^a ; ^{gfshi@shmu.edu.cn} ; ^{gigich@yeah.net}
• 关键词：FZHY ; Fuzheng Huayu ; CCl4 ; Carbon tetrachloride ; NK ; Natural killer ; SMA ; Smooth muscle actin ; IFN ; Interferon ; ECM ; Extracellular matrix ; HSCs ; Hepatic stellate cells ; TGF-¦Â ; transforming growth factor-beta ; PDGF ; Platelet-derived growth factor ; TCM ; Tr
• 刊名：Journal of Ethnopharmacology
• 出版年：2013
• 出版时间：9 January, 2013
• 年：2013
• 卷：145
• 期：1
• 页码：175-181
• 全文大小：920 K

文摘

Aim of the study

Fuzheng Huayu (FZHY) is a Chinese compound herbal preparation which consists of six Chinese herbs. This study examines the preventative effects of FZHY on liver fibrosis induced by carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄) and explores its possible mechanisms of action.

Materials and methods

Liver fibrosis was induced in male C57BL/6N mice by injecting a 10 % CCl₄ solution intraperitoneal twice a week for six weeks. After 6 weeks of treatment, serum ALT and AST assay, liver tissue histological examination and immunostaining were carried out to examine the liver function and fibrosis degree. The expression levels of alpha-smooth muscle actin (SMA) were measured by quantitative real-time PCR and western blot. Hepatic natural killer (NK) cells were isolated from liver and evaluated by FACS.

Results

Upon pathological examination, the FZHY-treated mice showed significantly reduced liver damage. The expression of ¦Á-SMA increased markedly upon treatment with CCl₄ and the increase was reversed by FZHY treatment. FZHY treatment also enhanced the activation of hepatic NK cells and the production of interferon-gamma (IFN-¦Ã). The protective effects of FZHY were reversed in the mice that were depleted of NK cells by anti-ASGM-1 Ab treatment.

Conclusions

FZHY can efficiently inhibit CCl₄-induced liver fibrosis. Furthermore, the depletion of NK cells attenuates the protective effects of FZHY. We conclude that FZHY could be an effective drug for liver fibrosis, and its mechanism of action involves the activation of hepatic NK cells.