Vitamin D Deficiency Aggravates Hepatic Oxidative Stress and Inflammation during Chronic Alcohol-Induced Liver Injury in Mice

Abstract EN

Vitamin D deficiency has been reported in alcoholics.

This study is aimed at evaluating the effects of vitamin D deficiency on chronic alcohol-induced liver injury in mice.

Mice were fed with modified Lieber-DeCarli liquid diets for 6 weeks to establish an animal model of chronic alcohol-induced liver injury.

In the VDD+EtOH group, mice were fed with modified diets, in which vitamin D was depleted.

Vitamin D deficiency aggravated alcohol-induced liver injury.

Furthermore, vitamin D deficiency aggravated hepatocyte apoptosis during alcohol-induced liver injury.

Although it has a little effect on hepatic TG content, vitamin D deficiency promoted alcohol-induced hepatic GSH depletion and lipid peroxidation.

Further analysis showed that vitamin D deficiency further increased alcohol-induced upregulation of hepatic inducible nitric oxide synthase (inos), two NADPH oxidase subunits p47phox and gp91phox, and heme oxygenase- (HO-) 1.

By contrast, vitamin D deficiency attenuated alcohol-induced upregulation of hepatic antioxidant enzyme genes, such as superoxide dismutase (sod) 1 and gshpx.

In addition, vitamin D deficiency significantly elevated alcohol-induced upregulation of hepatic proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines.

Taken together, these results suggest that vitamin D deficiency aggravates hepatic oxidative stress and inflammation during chronic alcohol-induced liver injury.