Autophagy in hepatic fibrosis.
Hepatic fibrosis is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Hepatic fibrosis is usually associated with chronic liver diseases caused by infection, drugs, metabolic disorders, or autoimmune imbalances. Effective clinical therapies are still lacking. Autophagy is a cellular process that degrades damaged organelles or protein aggregation, which participates in many pathological processes including liver diseases. Autophagy participates in hepatic fibrosis by activating hepatic stellate cells and may participate as well through influencing other fibrogenic cells. Besides that, autophagy can induce some liver diseases to develop while it may play a protective role in hepatocellular abnormal aggregates related liver diseases and reduces fibrosis. With a better understanding of the potential effects of autophagy on hepatic fibrosis, targeting autophagy might be a novel therapeutic strategy for hepatic fibrosis in the near future.
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Digestive Disease Institute, Shanghai Tongji Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, 389 Xincun Road, Shanghai 200065, China.
Yang
0000-0002-8542-5213
Y
Song
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Digestive Disease Institute, Shanghai Tongji Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, 389 Xincun Road, Shanghai 200065, China.
Yingying
Y
Zhao
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Digestive Disease Institute, Shanghai Tongji Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, 389 Xincun Road, Shanghai 200065, China.
Fei
F
Wang
Regeneration Lab and Experimental Center of Life Sciences, School of Life Science, Shanghai University, 333 Nan Chen Road, Shanghai 200444, China ; Department of Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, China.
Lichan
L
Tao
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Digestive Disease Institute, Shanghai Tongji Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, 389 Xincun Road, Shanghai 200065, China ; Regeneration Lab and Experimental Center of Life Sciences, School of Life Science, Shanghai University, 333 Nan Chen Road, Shanghai 200444, China ; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, School of Life Science, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China.
Junjie
0000-0002-9202-0003
J
Xiao
Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Digestive Disease Institute, Shanghai Tongji Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, 389 Xincun Road, Shanghai 200065, China.
Changqing
C
Yang
D000818:Animals; D001343:Autophagy / Q000502:physiology*; D005355:Fibrosis / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000473:pathology*