Hugan Qingzhi Exerts Anti-Inflammatory Effects in a Rat Model of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

الملخص EN

Ethnopharmacological Relevance.

The Hugan Qingzhi tablet (HQT) is a traditional Chinese medicine used for treating NAFLD (nonalcoholic fatty liver disease).

The present study evaluated the anti-inflammatory effects of HQT in rats with NAFLD.

Materials and Methods.

HQT was administered daily to the NAFLD experimental groups.

Biochemical markers, histopathological data, and oxidative stress/antioxidant biomarkers were determined.

Proinflammatory cytokines interleukin-1β (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were detected by enzyme-linked immunoassay.

Expressions of silent information regulator 1 (SIRT1) and acetylated-nuclear-factor kappaB-p65 (Ac-NF-κB-p65) were performed by western blotting.

Results.

At high and moderate doses, HQT was highly effective in decreasing serum alanine aminotransferase (P<0.01), aspartate aminotransferase (P<0.01), hepatic total cholesterol (P<0.01), triglycerides (P<0.01), and free fatty acid levels (P<0.01).

Moreover, high and moderate doses of HQT reduced hepatic levels of the proinflammatory cytokines TNF-α (P<0.01), IL-1β (P<0.01), and IL-6 (P<0.01), enhanced SIRT1 expression, and depressed Ac-NF-κB-p65 expression at protein level.

Conclusions.

In our NAFLD rat model, HQT exerted substantial anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities, possibly involving the regulation of SIRT1 and Ac-NF-κB-p65 expression.