Hepatocyte ballooning and steatosis in early and late gestation without liver malfunction: Effects of low protein/high carbohydrate diet.

Pregnancy is a challenging metabolic and physiological condition. The aim of this study was to include a second demanding situation as a low protein/high carbohydrate diet (LPHCD) to characterize the histological and functional responses of the maternal liver. It is unknown how the maternal liver responds during early and late pregnancy to LPHCD intake. We explored early pregnancy (3 and 8 gestational age, G) and late pregnancy (15 and 20 G). The results indicated that pregnant rats under control diet showed an evident presence of ballooned hepatocytes, lipid vesicles and edema at late pregnancy (15G); in contrast, pregnant rats under LPHCD showed similar pattern of histological modification but at early pregnancy (3G). Unexpectedly, the serum biomarkers didn't display functional alterations in either group, despite of the evident histological changes no liver malfunction was detected. We conclude that pregnant rats fed with control diet and experimental LPHCD, are subjected to metabolic and physiological conditions that impact the histopathological condition of the maternal liver. Control diet promoted the histological modifications during late pregnancy whereas LPCHCD advanced the onset of these changes. Further experiments are needed to explore the biochemical mechanisms that underlie these histological modifications. Our results are also an example of the resilience associated with the pregnancy: since no functional hepatic alterations accompanied the histopathological changes, another conclusion is that no evident pathological condition was detected in this nutritional protocol.

Bean Leaves Ameliorate Lipotoxicity in Fatty Liver Disease.

Bioactive compounds in plant-based food have protective effects against metabolic alterations, including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Bean leaves are widely cultivated in the world and are a source of dietary fiber and polyphenols. High fat/high fructose diet animal models promote deleterious effects in adipose and non-adipose tissues (lipotoxicity), leading to obesity and its comorbidities. Short-term supplementation of bean leaves exhibited anti-diabetic, anti-hyperlipidemic, and anti-obesity effects in high-fat/high-fructose diet animal models. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of bean leaves supplementation in the prevention of lipotoxicity in NAFLD and contribute to elucidating the possible mechanism involved for a longer period of time. During thirteen weeks, male Wistar rats (n = 9/group) were fed with: (1) S: Rodent Laboratory Chow 5001® (RLC); (2) SBL: 90% RLC+ 10% dry bean leaves; (3) H: high-fat/high-fructose diet; (4) HBL: H+ 10% of dry bean leaves. Overall, a HBL diet enhanced impaired glucose tolerance and ameliorated obesity, risk factors in NAFLD development. Additionally, bean leaves exerted antioxidant (↑serum GSH) and anti-inflammatory (↓mRNA TNFα in the liver) effects, prevented hepatic fat accumulation by enhanced ↑mRNA PPARα (ß oxidation), and enhanced lipid peroxidation (↓liver MDA). These findings suggest that bean leaves ameliorated hepatic lipotoxicity derived from the consumption of a deleterious diet.

Lieber-DeCarli Diet Promotes Different Hepatic Histological Changes During Early and Late Pregnancy: An Example of Maternal Resilience.

BACKGROUND/AIM: During pregnancy, maternal liver can be affected by ethanol (ETOH) intake, whose effects depend on concentration levels ingested. This study aims to describe histological and serum marker characteristics of maternal liver during two metabolic conditions: gestation (G), and sustained ETOH intake, in early and late pregnancy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Wistar rats were fed with Lieber-DeCarli diet during pregnancy, following an experimental protocol that allows a semi-chronic intake of ETOH (5%). Liver and serum samples were processed for histological characterization and biochemical profiling. Hematoxylin/eosin and Schiff's Periodic Acid staining were used. RESULTS: During pregnancy, a significant elevation in ballooned and edamatous hepatocytes, and a significant increase in micro and macrovesicular deposits were observed in rats fed with the ETOH diet at gestation days 3G, 8G and 15G. These changes were reverted by 20G. Liver glycogen content increased significantly at 15G. Serum metabolites in pregnant rats fed with the ETOH diet showed a significant reduction in urea (from 3G to 15G), an increase in albumin and uric acid at 20G, and a reduction in creatinine. Number of offsprings and weight of male newborns were reduced by 20% and 14%, respectively. Liver function markers in serum showed no significant changes. CONCLUSION: ETOH diet intake promotes hepatic histological changes and histological modifications during pregnancy. These results support the assumption that pregnancy is an adaptive procedure that is associated with nutritional conditions and has a strong influence on hepatic histology. They suggest that pregnancy promotes a state of resilience to the liver function during the sustained intake of 5% ETOH.