Effects of pentoxifylline on expression of uncoupling protein 2 of hepatic mitochondria in rats with nonalcoholic fatty liver / 中华老年医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the effects of pentoxifylline (PTX) on the expression of uncoupling protein 2 (UCP-2) of hepatic mitochondria in rats with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Methods Sixty SD rats were randomly divided into 3 groups (each n = 20): normal control group, experiment group and treatment group. The rats in normal control group were given a normal feed. The rats in experiment and treatment groups were given fat-rich feed. Furthermore, the rats in treatment group were given PTX after 4 weeks in fat-rich diet feeding. The expression of UCP-2 in the liver was detected by immunohistochemistry and semi-quantitative RT-PCR. Results The hepatic expression of UCP2 mRNA was higher in experiment group (4.0±0.3) than in normal control group (1.2±0.1). The hepatic expression of UCP2 mRNA was higher in treatment group (3.0±0.2) than in normal control group, but the hepatic expression of UCP2 mRNA was lower in treatment group than in experiment group (F = 160. 67, P＜ 0. 01). Conclusions The UCP-2 mRNA is expressed in livers of NAFLD, pentoxifylline plays an important role in the reduction of expression of UCP-2 mRNA in lives of NAFLD.