PUBLICATION

Tripterygium wilfordii multiglycoside-induced hepatotoxicity via inflammation and apoptosis in zebrafish

Authors
Duan, X.Y., Ma, R.J., Hsiao, C.D., Jiang, Z.Z., Zhang, L.Y., Zhang, Y., Liu, K.C.
ID
ZDB-PUB-211026-1
Date
2021
Source
Chinese Journal of Natural Medicines   19: 750-757 (Journal)
Registered Authors
Hsiao, Chung-Der
Keywords
Apoptosis, Hepatotoxicity, Inflammation, Tripterygium wilfordii multiglycoside, Zebrafish
MeSH Terms
  • Animals
  • Apoptosis
  • Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury*/genetics
  • Inflammation/chemically induced
  • Inflammation/genetics
  • Trans-Activators
  • Tripterygium*
  • Zebrafish/genetics
  • Zebrafish Proteins
PubMed
34688465 Full text @ Chin. J. Nat. Med.
Abstract
Tripterygium wilfordii multiglycoside (GTW) is a commonly used compound for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and immune diseases in clinical practice. However, it can induce liver injury and the mechanism of hepatotoxicity is still not clear. This study was designed to investigate GTW-induced hepatotoxicity in zebrafish larvae and explore the mechanism involved. The 72 hpf (hours post fertilization) zebrafish larvae were administered with different concentrations of GTW for three days and their mortality, malformation rate, morphological changes in the liver, transaminase levels, and histopathological changes in the liver of zebrafish larvae were detected. The reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to examine the levels of microRNA-122 (miR-122) and genes related to inflammation, apoptosis, cell proliferation and liver function. The results showed that GTW increased the mortality of zebrafish larvae, while significant malformations and liver damage occurred. The main manifestations were elevated levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST), significant liver atrophy, vacuoles in liver tissue, sparse cytoplasm, and unclear hepatocyte contours. RT-PCR results showed that the expression of miR-122 significantly decreased by GTW; the mRNA levels of inflammation-related genes il1β, il6, tnfα, il10, cox2 and ptges significantly increased; the mRNA level of tgfβ significantly decreased; the mRNA levels of apoptosis-related genes, caspase-8 and caspase-9, significantly increased; the mRNA level of bcl2 significantly decreased; the mRNA levels of cell proliferation-related genes, top2α and uhrf1, significantly reduced; the mRNA levels of liver function-related genes, alr and cyp3c1, significantly increased; and the mRNA level of cyp3a65 significantly decreased. In zebrafish, GTW can cause increased inflammation, enhanced apoptosis, decreased cell proliferation, and abnormal expression of liver function-related genes, leading to abnormal liver structure and function and resulting in hepatotoxicity.
Genes / Markers
Figures
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Antibodies
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping