Effects of Artemisia argyi extract on nonalcoholic steatohepatitis in choline-deficient-L-amino-acid-defined, high-fat diet-fed mice

Abstract

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), the leading cause of fibrosis and end-stage liver disease, is a progressive form of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The worldwide prevalence of NAFLD approached 25% however up to today no specific drugs have been approved on the market. Natural products have been an important source of drug discovery and have promising efficacy for preventing and treating metabolic diseases. Artemisia argyi (AA) has been widely used as traditional medicine for alleviating pain in the lower abdomen, abnormal menstruation, and inflammation in East Asia. To examine the therapeutic effects of AA ethanol extract (AAEE) in NASH, the choline-deficient-L-amino-acid-defined, high-fat diet (CDAHFD) was fed into C57BL/6J mice for 10 weeks to develop the NASH model. Oral administration of AAEE has shown potential effects on biochemical markers, lipid profiles, and the mRNA level of oxidative stress, lipolysis, and fibrosis-related genes including Cat, Sod1, Ppara, Col1a1, and Col3a1 in the liver. We also found that AAEE significantly reduced hepatic fibrosis areas using Sirius red staining. These results suggest AA is a promising therapeutic candidate for fibrosis and liver disease in CDAHFD-induced mice.