title: A role of cell apoptosis in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced nonlethal liver injury in D-galactosamine (D-GalN)-sensitized rats.
abstract: Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is implicated in the pathology of acute liver injury and can induce lethal liver failure when simultaneously administered with D-galactosamine (D-GalN). At the present time, nonlethal liver failure, the liver injury of clinical implication, is incompletely understood following challenge by low-dose LPS/D-GalN. We report here our investigation of the effects of liver injury following a nonlethal dose LPS/D-GalN and the role of apoptosis in this disorder. Blood biochemistry indexes, including those of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and total bilirubin (TBIL), had risen by 6 h post-LPS/D-GalN injection, reached a peak at 24 h and sustained high levels at 48 h. An abnormal liver appearance was found at 24 and 48 h post-injection. Histopathological changes of hepatic injuries accompanied by hepatocellular death, inflammatory infiltration and hemorrhage began to appear at 6 h and were markedly aggravated at 24 and 48 h. Cell apoptosis was significantly induced by the nonlethal dose LPS/D-GalN challenge, and the apoptotic indexes (AIs) in 24 h- and 48 h-treated rats were approximately 70%, as estimated by the terminal transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) assay. The mRNA levels of the inflammatory cytokine IL-1beta rose markedly at 6 h and maintained high levels at 24 and 48 h; however, TNF-alpha levels were normal in the liver tissues of 6-, 24- and 48-h-treated rats. mRNA expression of the damage gene nitric oxide synthase (NOS) was also induced early by the LPS/D-GalN challenge, reaching a peak at 6 h, then gradually decreasing in a stepwise manner; conversely, high expression levels of the apoptosis-inducing gene p53 mRNA were not found in the early post-injection period (6 h) but emerged in the crest-time of liver apoptosis (24 h) and were maintained at this level until the late stage (48 h). We also observed that in 24 h-treated rats, caspase-3, -8, -9 and -12 were markedly activated by LPS/D-GalN challenge. These results suggest that a challenge with low-dose LPS in conjunction with D-GalN can induce nonlethal but marked liver failure, the main morphological feature of which is hepatic apoptosis, which may be associated with a high expression of inducible (i)NOS (early post-injection period) and p53 genes (in the mid and late stages) and at least three apoptosis pathways participate in the pathogenesis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Second Affiliated Hospital, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Liang-Ming
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Ji-Xiang
authors.initials: JX
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.forename: Hong-Xing
authors.initials: HX
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Huan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.forename: Jian-Yong
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Sui-Lin
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Sun
mesh_terms: D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects*; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases / Q000097:blood; D001663:Bilirubin / Q000097:blood; D020169:Caspases / Q000378:metabolism; D005688:Galactosamine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D020287:In Situ Nick-End Labeling; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D017114:Liver Failure, Acute / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D005688:Galactosamine; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases; D000410:Alanine Transaminase; D020169:Caspases; D001663:Bilirubin