title: [Nicotine alleviates the liver inflammation of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis induced by high-fat and high-fructose in mice].
abstract: To investigate the anti-inflammation effects by activation of the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway and its mechanisms in non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) model mice.
  
  
  
  6-week-old male C57BL/6J (B6) mice were randomly divided into four groups: the first group was normal mice, injected with saline; the second group was normal mice, injected with nicotine; the third group was NASH model mice, injected with saline; the fourth group was NASH model mice, injected with nicotine. The experimental mice were fed with either standard chow (SC) or high-fat and high-fructose (HFHF) for 17 weeks to generate an NASH model mice. The mice received injection once daily for 3 weeks [nicotine dose, 400 μg/kg]. Then, their pathological characteristics and function of the liver were assessed. The expressions of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in serum were analyzed by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The expressions of alpha 7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (α7nAChR), Toll-like receptors-4 (TLR-4) and nuclear factor κB of phosphory-lation (p-NF-κB) in Kupffer cells were determined by Western blot and immunofluorescence assays.
  
  
  
  We successfully generated NASH model mice by imitating the high-fat and high-fructose dietary style of NASH patients. The results of our investigation demonstrated that nicotine could reduce significantly the levels of IL-6, and TNF-α in serum (P<0.05). The expression of p-NF-κB protein in the group which was NASH model mice injected with nicotine declined significantly as compared with the group which was NASH model mice injected with saline (P<0.05). And the expression of α7nAChR protein elevated significantly conversely (P<0.05).
  
  
  
  Activation of the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway could inhibit the release of inflammatory factors as TNF-α and IL-6 in NASH model mice, and the mechanism for the inhibition of inflammatory was mediated by NF-κB pathway.
authors.affiliation: Department of Liver Disease, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou 310005, China.
authors.forename: X M
authors.initials: XM
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Liver Disease, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou 310005, China.
authors.forename: F Q
authors.initials: FQ
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Endoscopic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Whenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325000, Zhejiang, China.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.affiliation: Department of Liver Disease, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou 310005, China.
authors.forename: X C
authors.initials: XC
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Department of Liver Disease, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou 310005, China.
authors.forename: C L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Tang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000070601:Diet, Carbohydrate Loading / Q000009:adverse effects; D059305:Diet, High-Fat / Q000009:adverse effects; D004041:Dietary Fats / Q000009:adverse effects; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D015536:Down-Regulation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D005632:Fructose / Q000009:adverse effects; D007249:Inflammation / Q000188:drug therapy; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000097:blood; D007728:Kupffer Cells / Q000737:chemistry*; D008099:Liver / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D016328:NF-kappa B / Q000032:analysis / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D009538:Nicotine / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D065626:Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D051197:Toll-Like Receptor 4 / Q000032:analysis; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000097:blood; D064569:alpha7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor / Q000032:analysis; D000093242:Interleukin-6 Inhibitors
chemical_list: D004041:Dietary Fats; D005632:Fructose; D015850:Interleukin-6; D016328:NF-kappa B; D009538:Nicotine; D051197:Toll-Like Receptor 4; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D064569:alpha7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor; D000093242:Interleukin-6 Inhibitors