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Serotonin deficiency exacerbates acetaminophen-induced liver toxicity in mice.

ABSTRACT: Acetaminophen (APAP) overdose is a major cause of acute liver failure. Peripheral 5-hydroxytryptamine (serotonin, 5-HT) is a cytoprotective neurotransmitter which is also involved in the hepatic physiological and pathological process. This study seeks to investigate the mechanisms involved in APAP-induced hepatotoxicity, as well as the role of 5-HT in the liver's response to APAP toxicity. We induced APAP hepatotoxicity in mice either sufficient of serotonin (wild-type mice and TPH1-/- plus 5- Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP)) or lacking peripheral serotonin (Tph1-/- and wild-type mice plus p-chlorophenylalanine (PCPA)). Mice with sufficient 5-HT exposed to acetaminophen have a significantly lower mortality rate and a better outcome compared with mice deficient of 5-HT. This difference is at least partially attributable to a decreased level of inflammation, oxidative stress and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, Glutathione (GSH) depletion, peroxynitrite formation, hepatocyte apoptosis, elevated hepatocyte proliferation, activation of 5-HT2B receptor, less activated c-Jun NH₂-terminal kinase (JNK) and hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α in the mice sufficient of 5-HT versus mice deficient of 5-HT. We thus propose a physiological function of serotonin that serotonin could ameliorate APAP-induced liver injury mainly through inhibiting hepatocyte apoptosis ER stress and promoting liver regeneration.

SUBMITTER: Zhang J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4309973 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:Acetaminophen (APAP) overdose leads to severe hepatotoxicity. Osthole, a natural coumarin found in traditional Chinese medicinal herbs, has therapeutic potential in the treatment of various diseases. In this study, we investigated the effects of osthole against APAP-induced hepatotoxicity in mice. Mice were administered osthole (100 mg·kg-1·d-1, ip) for 3 d, then on the fourth day APAP (300 mg/kg, ip) was co-administered with osthole. The mice were euthanized post-APAP, their serum and livers were collected for analysis. Pretreatment with osthole significantly attenuated APAP-induced hepatocyte necrosis and the increases in ALT and AST activities. Compared with the mice treated with APAP alone, osthole pretreatment significantly reduced serum MDA levels and hepatic H2O2 levels, and improved liver GSH levels and the GSSG-to-GSH ratio. Meanwhile, osthole pretreatment markedly alleviated the APAP-induced up-regulation of inflammatory cytokines in the livers, and inhibited the expression of hepatic cytochrome P450 enzymes, but it increased the expression of hepatic UDP-glucuronosyltransferases (UGTs) and sulfotransferases (SULTs). Furthermore, osthole pretreatment reversed APAP-induced reduction of hepatic cAMP levels, but pretreatment with H89, a potent selective PKA inhibitor, failed to abolish the beneficial effect of osthole, whereas pretreatment with L-buthionine sulfoximine, a GSH synthesis inhibitor, abrogated the protective effects of osthole on APAP-induced liver injury, and abolished osthole-caused alterations in APAP-metabolizing enzymes. In cultured murine primary hepatocytes and Raw264.7 cells, however, osthole (40 μmol/L) did not alleviate APAP-induced cell death, but it significantly suppressed APAP-caused elevation of inflammatory cytokines. Collectively, we have demonstrated that osthole exerts a preventive effect against APAP-induced hepatotoxicity by inhibiting the metabolic activation of APAP and enhancing its clearance through an antioxidation mechanism.

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Serotonin deficiency exacerbates acetaminophen-induced liver toxicity in mice.

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