Beraprost sodium preconditioning prevents inflammation, apoptosis, and autophagy during hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury in mice via the P38 and JNK pathways

• Main Authors: Deng J, Feng J, Liu T, Lu X, Wang W, Liu N, Lv Y, Liu Q, Guo C, Zhou Y
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dove Medical Press 2018-11-01
• Series: Drug Design, Development and Therapy
• Subjects: liver ischemia-reperfusion injury; Beraprost sodium; inflammation; apoptosis; autophagy; MAPK pathway.
• Online Access: https://www.dovepress.com/beraprost-sodium-preconditioning-prevents-inflammation-apoptosis-and-a-peer-reviewed-article-DDDT

Jingfan Deng,1 Jiao Feng,1 Tong Liu,1 Xiya Lu,1 Wenwen Wang,1 Ning Liu,2 Yang Lv,1 Qing Liu,1 Chuanyong Guo,1 Yingqun Zhou1 1Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai Tenth People’s Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200072, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai Tenth People’s Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine of Nanjing Medical University, Shanghai 200072, People’s Republic of China Objective: The goal of this study was to determine the effects of beraprost sodium (BPS) preconditioning on hepatic ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury and its underlying mechanisms of action. Materials and methods: Mice were randomly divided into sham, IR, IR+BPS (50 µg/kg), and IR+BPS (100 µg/kg) groups. Saline or BPS was given to the mice by daily gavage for 1 week before the hepatic IR model was established. Liver tissues and orbital blood were collected at 2, 8, and 24 hours after reperfusion for the determination of liver enzymes, inflammatory mediators, apoptosis- and autophagy-related proteins, key proteins in P38 and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) cascades, and evaluation of liver histopathology. Results: BPS preconditioning effectively reduced serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels, improved pathological damage, ameliorated production of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and affected expressions of Bax, Bcl-2, Caspase-3, Caspase-8, and Caspase-9, microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 (LC3), Beclin-1, and P62. The protective effects of BPS preconditioning were associated with reduced P38 and JNK phosphorylation. Conclusion: BPS preconditioning ameliorated hepatic IR injury by suppressing inflammation, apoptosis, and autophagy, partially via inhibiting activation of the P38 and JNK cascades. Keywords: liver injury, beraprost sodium, inflammation, apoptosis, autophagy, MAPK pathway