Maslinic acid protects against lipopolysaccharide/d-galactosamine-induced acute liver injury in mice.

Acute liver injury is a life-threatening syndrome that often caused by hepatocyte damage. In this study, we investigated the protective effects of maslinic acid (MA) on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)/d-galactosamine (D-gal)-induced acute liver injury and clarified its mechanism. Mice acute liver injury model was induced by given LPS and D-gal and MA was given intraperitoneally 1 h before LPS and D-gal. Our results showed that MA protected against liver injury by attenuating liver histopathologic changes, serum AST and ALT levels. The increased inflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-6 in serum and liver tissues were also inhibited by MA. The level of MDA and the activity of MPO in liver tissues were up-regulated by LPS/D-gal and dose-dependently inhibited by MA. Furthermore, MA attenuated hepatic NF-κB protein expression and increased hepatic Nrf2 and HO-1 protein expression. Taken together, MA offers a protective role against LPS/D-gal-induced liver injury through suppressing NF-κB and activating Nrf2 signaling pathways.

Interactions between CYP1A1 polymorphisms and cigarette smoking are associated with the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma: evidence from epidemiological studies.

The Cytochrome P-450 1A1 (CYP1A1) gene has been implicated in the etiology of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the results have been inconsistent. In this study, a meta-analysis was performed to clarify the associations of polymorphisms in CYP1A1 gene with HCC risk. Published literature from PubMed, Embase, CNKI and Wanfang Data were retrieved. Pooled odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated using fixed- or random-effects model. Eight studies (1,752 cases and 2,279 controls) for Ile-Val polymorphism and eight studies (933 cases and 1,449 controls) for MspI polymorphism were identified. The results showed that there was no statistically significant association between the Ile-Val polymorphism and HCC risk under all genetic models (co-dominant model: Val/Val vs. Ile/Ile: OR = 1.62, 95% CI 0.96-2.72 and Ile/Val vs. Ile/Ile: OR = 1.15, 95% CI 0.87-1.52; dominant model: OR = 1.25, 95% CI 0.92-1.70; recessive model: OR = 1.48, 95% CI 0.99-2.21). The MspI polymorphism was also not associated with HCC risk (co-dominant model: m2m2 vs. m1m1: OR = 1.09, 95% CI 0.83-1.42 and m1m2 vs. m1m1: OR = 1.30, 95% CI 1.05-1.61; dominant model: OR = 1.20, 95% CI 0.99­1.45; recessive model: OR = 0.94, 95% CI 0.74-1.18). However, the significant associations were found between both the Ile­Val and MspI polymorphisms and HCC risk among the cigarette smoking subjects (Ile-Val: OR = 1.40, 95% CI 1.06-1.85; MspI: OR = 2.65, 95% CI 1.47-4.77). The present meta-analysis indicated that the MspI and Ile-Val polymorphisms of CYP1A1 may play important roles in increasing susceptibility to smoking-related HCC.