title: Curcumin protects against CCl4-induced liver fibrosis in rats by inhibiting HIF-1α through an ERK-dependent pathway.
abstract: The ERK/HIF-1α signaling pathway is believed to play an important role in the genesis of progressive fibrosis. An increasing expression of HIF-1α and ERK accompanies CCl4-induced liver fibrosis in rats. Curcumin is verified to have antifibrotic effects in several kinds of liver fibrosis models. There is no specific evidence illustrating a connection between curcumin and the HIF-1α/ERK pathway in rat liver fibrosis induced by CCl4. In this study, liver fibrosis was induced by CCl4 in treated rats. The data demonstrated that curcumin was able to attenuate liver fibrosis and inhibit the proliferation of HSC. Moreover, curcumin could remarkably elevate the hepatic function by decreasing serum levels of ALT, AST and ALP, and increasing levels of ALB, TP and α-SMA, Col III mRNA expression. Meanwhile, ECM status could also be reflected by curcumin treatment. The alleviation with curcumin treatment was associated with inhibition of HIF-1α and phosphor-ERK. This study indicates that curcumin alleviates fibrosis by reducing the expression of HIF-1α partly through the ERK pathway.
authors.affiliation: China Military Institute of Chinese Medicine, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Yanling
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: China Military Institute of Chinese Medicine, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Xiao
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: China Military Institute of Chinese Medicine, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Jiabo
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China.
authors.forename: Xuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Research and Technology Service Center, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Medical Center, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Medical Center, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Ruilin
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Research and Technology Service Center, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Ruisheng
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Medical Center, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Man
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Medical Center, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Shengqiang
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.affiliation: China Military Institute of Chinese Medicine, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing 100039, China. xiaoxiaohe302@126.com.
authors.forename: Xiaohe
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xiao
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002251:Carbon Tetrachloride / Q000009:adverse effects*; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D003474:Curcumin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051795:Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit / Q000378:metabolism*; D008099:Liver / Q000187:drug effects; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D008111:Liver Function Tests / Q000379:methods; D020935:MAP Kinase Signaling System / Q000187:drug effects*; D008297:Male; D020011:Protective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: C497444:Hif1a protein, rat; D051795:Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit; D020011:Protective Agents; D002251:Carbon Tetrachloride; D003474:Curcumin