Chemopreventive effect of silymarin on liver pathology in HBV X protein transgenic mice.
There are currently limited therapeutic regimens available for effective treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Silymarin is a naturally derived polyphenolic antioxidant with hepatoprotective properties and is very widely used in clinical application; however, effect of silymarin on spontaneous HCC has not been studied. Silymarin was evaluated for its efficacy against spontaneous carcinogenesis using the HBV X protein (HBx) transgenic model. Silymarin was p.o. given to the HBx transgenic mice from 4 to 6 weeks of age. Our data indicated that silymarin has therapeutic effects on the early stages of liver damage, reversing fatty changes and recovering liver histopathology in a dose-dependent manner. To study the chemopreventive effects on the later stages of carcinogenesis, the mice at 13 months were split into a precancerous group and a group with significant liver carcinogenesis. After silymarin was given to the precancerous mice from 13 to 16 months of age, in contrast to an 80% incidence of HCC development in the untreated transgenic mice, no HCC was detected in any of these mice. Nonetheless, small hyperplastic nodules were detected in 86% of these precancerous mice. In the second group with notable HCC, silymarin was unable to block cancer progression. Although silymarin did not affect HBx expression, intracellular reactive oxygen species levels were decreased, cell proliferation was stimulated, and hepatocyte ultrastructure was found to significantly recover. In conclusion, silymarin exerts beneficial effects on the early stages of liver pathogenesis, preventing and delaying liver carcinogenesis. This drug should be considered as a potential chemopreventive agent for HBV-related hepatocarcinogenesis.
Wu
Yi-Fang
YF
Faculty of Life Sciences and Institute of Genome Sciences, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei 112, Taiwan.
Fu
Shu-Ling
SL
Kao
Cheng-Heng
CH
Yang
Chu-Wen
CW
Lin
Chao-Hsiung
CH
Hsu
Ming-Ta
MT
Tsai
Ting-Fen
TF
D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology; D048708:Cell Growth Processes / Q000187:drug effects; D018450:Disease Progression; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005234:Fatty Liver / Q000201:enzymology / Q000473:pathology; D005978:Glutathione / Q000378:metabolism; D008099:Liver / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008114:Liver Neoplasms, Experimental / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism; D012838:Silymarin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015534:Trans-Activators / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D054334:Viral Regulatory and Accessory Proteins
D000975:Antioxidants; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; D012838:Silymarin; D015534:Trans-Activators; D054334:Viral Regulatory and Accessory Proteins; C057628:hepatitis B virus X protein; D005978:Glutathione