title: Differential regulation of TGF-beta signal in hepatic stellate cells between acute and chronic rat liver injury.
abstract: During chronic liver injury, transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) plays a prominent role in stimulating liver fibrogenesis by myofibroblast-like cells derived from hepatic stellate cells (HSCs). On the other hand, Smad 7 was recently shown to antagonize the TGF-beta-induced activation of signal-transducing Smads (2 and 3). In this study, we investigated the regulatory mechanisms of the TGF-beta signals in rat HSCs during acute liver injury and myofibroblasts (MFBs) during chronic liver injury, focusing on the roles of Smad 2 and antagonistic Smad 7. In acute liver injury, HSC-derived TGF-beta increased plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 (PAI-1) and alpha2(I) procollagen (COL1A2) transcripts. Smad 2 in HSCs during liver injury and primary cultured HSCs were activated by an autocrine mechanism, because high levels of Smad 2 phosphorylation and induction of PAI-1 transcript by TGF-beta were observed in HSCs. Thereafter, Smad 7 induced by TGF-beta negatively regulated the Smad 2 action. These results indicated that endogenous TGFbeta-mediated Smad 7 in HSCs terminated the fibrotic signals mediated by signal-transducing Smads, and might be involved in the transient response to autocrine TGF-beta signal after acute liver injury. By contrast, Smad 7 was not induced by the autocrine TGF-beta signal, and constitutive Smad 2 activation was observed in MFBs throughout chronic liver injury, although Smad 7 could inhibit the TGF-beta signal requiring Smad 2 phosphorylation by activated TGF-beta receptor in cultured MFBs. This constitutive phosphorylation of Smad 2 by endogenous TGF-beta under a low level of Smad 7 could be involved in the progression of liver fibrosis.
authors.affiliation: Third Department of Internal Medicine, Kansai Medical University, Osaka, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshiya
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tahashi
authors.forename: Koichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Matsuzaki
authors.forename: Masataka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Date
authors.forename: Katsunori
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Fukiko
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Furukawa
authors.forename: Yasushi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sugano
authors.forename: Masanori
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Matsushita
authors.forename: Yasuo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Himeno
authors.forename: Yutaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Inagaki
authors.forename: Kyoichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Inoue
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000818:Animals; D002251:Carbon Tetrachloride / Q000008:administration & dosage; D002455:Cell Division; D002460:Cell Line; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D056486:Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003094:Collagen / Q000235:genetics; D024042:Collagen Type I; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000378:metabolism; D015870:Gene Expression; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000378:metabolism; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism*; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D010766:Phosphorylation; D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1 / Q000235:genetics; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000096:biosynthesis; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D015398:Signal Transduction; D051899:Smad2 Protein; D051906:Smad7 Protein; D015534:Trans-Activators / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D014162:Transfection; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D024042:Collagen Type I; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D051899:Smad2 Protein; C497784:Smad2 protein, rat; D051906:Smad7 Protein; C497808:Smad7 protein, rat; D015534:Trans-Activators; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D003094:Collagen; D002251:Carbon Tetrachloride