【Animal modeling】-Effect of self-made Gehua Jijiu Dizhi Decoction on liver fat deposition and PXR expression in alcoholic fatty liver mice

  Objective: To understand the effect of self-made Gehua Jiejiu Dizhi Decoction on liver fat deposition in alcoholic fatty liver (AFLD) mice, and to observe its effect on liver pregnane receptor (PXR) and its regulatory target genes CYP3A11 and CYP3A25 proteins and mRNA expression.

  Methods: Twenty-nine male C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into normal group (5 mice), model group (8 mice), high-dose intervention group (8 mice), and low-dose intervention group (8 mice). The AFLD mouse model was established by the method of the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) of the National Institutes of Health of the United States. High and low doses of Gehua Jiejiu Dizhi Decoction were administered by gavage respectively for 9 consecutive days. Serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and hepatic fat deposition was detected by histopathological Oil Red O staining; real-time quantitative PCR and immunohistochemistry were used to detect PXR, CYP3A11, Expression of CYP3A25 mRNA and PXR protein.

  Results: Compared with the model group, the liver fat deposition in the intervention group was significantly reduced in a dose-dependent manner, and the expression levels of PXR and CYP3A25 were significantly higher than those in the model group and the normal group (P<0.01); the serum ALT level in the model group mice Significantly increased (P < 0.01), and the rest of the groups were similar; there was no significant difference in CYP3A11 mRNA transcript levels between groups (P ≥ 0.05).

  Conclusion: Self-made Gehua Jiejiu Dizhi Decoction has obvious therapeutic effect on AFLD in experimental mice, which may be related to promoting the expression of PXR and its target gene CYP3A25.