Huazhi Rougan Granule Alleviates Liver and Intestinal Damage in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease by Regulating miR-122 Expression and TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB Pathway Activation

Ping Xie; Xiaowei Jin; Chan Li; Kun Lv; Ming Deng

doi:10.2174/0113862073290372240603090844

Huazhi Rougan Granule Alleviates Liver and Intestinal Damage in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease by Regulating miR-122 Expression and TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB Pathway Activation

Comb Chem High Throughput Screen. 2024 Nov 19. doi: 10.2174/0113862073290372240603090844. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Ping Xie¹, Xiaowei Jin², Chan Li¹, Kun Lv¹, Ming Deng³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Wuhan Third Hospital, Tongren Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, P. R, China.
² Department of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Yunnan Cancer Hospital, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming 650019, Yunnan, China.
³ Department of Orthopedics, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, Hubei, China.

PMID: 39563215
DOI: 10.2174/0113862073290372240603090844

Abstract

Purpose: miR-122 is upregulated in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) liver tissue, and knockdown of miR-122 protects hepatocytes from lipid metabolism disorders. This study aimed to investigate whether Huazhi Rougan Granule (HRG) alleviates NAFLD liver and intestinal injury by regulating the miR-122-mediated TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB pathway.

Methods: Rats with NAFLD were constructed by high-fat feeding. Serum levels of total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were measured using a fully automated biochemical instrument. Histopathological changes in the liver and small intestine were observed by HE staining. QRT-PCR detected the expression level of miR-122 in the liver tissues. The protein expression of TLR4, MyD88, NF- κB p65, and p-p65 in liver tissues was detected by western blotting.

Results: HRG slowed down the weight gain of NAFLD rats, decreased (P<0.05) the levels of TC, TG, ALT, AST, TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, LPS, and Hpt, improved the pathological status of liver and small intestine tissues, upregulated (P<0.05) the expression of ZO-1 and Occludin, downregulated (P<0.05) the protein expression of TLR4, MyD88, and p-p65, and inhibited (P<0.05) the expression of miR-122.

Conclusion: HRG may alleviate hepatic and intestinal injuries in rats with NAFLD by regulating the miR-122-mediated TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB pathway.

Keywords: Non-alcoholic fatty liver; TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB pathway; aspartate aminotransferase.; intestinal injury; liver; miR-122.