Open Access

Protective role of thymoquinone in sepsis‑induced liver injury in BALB/c mice

  • Authors:
    • Fei Wang
    • Xiong Lei
    • Yue Zhao
    • Qinggong Yu
    • Qianwei Li
    • Hui Zhao
    • Zuowei Pei
  • View Affiliations

  • Published online on: July 17, 2019     https://doi.org/10.3892/etm.2019.7779
  • Pages: 1985-1992
  • Copyright: © Wang et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

Sepsis increases the risk of developing liver injury. Previous studies have demonstrated that thymoquinone (TQ) exhibits hepatoprotective properties in vivo as well as in vitro. The present study aimed to investigate the underlying mechanisms of the protective effects of TQ against liver injury in septic BALB/c mice. Male BALB/c mice (age, 8 weeks) were randomly divided into four groups, namely, the control, TQ (50 mg/kg/day) treatment, cecal ligation and puncture (CLP), and TQ + CLP groups. CLP was performed following gavage of TQ for 2 weeks. At 48 h post‑CLP, the histopathological alterations in the liver tissue (LT) and plasma levels of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) were assessed. The present study evaluated microtubule‑associated protein light chain 3 (LC3), sequestosome‑1 (p62) and beclin 1 protein expression by western blotting and immunostaining, as well as interleukin (IL)‑6, IL‑1β, IL‑10, monocyte chemoattractant protein‑1 (MCP‑1) and tumor necrosis factor‑α (TNF‑α) mRNA expression by RT‑qPCR. The results of the present study indicated that administration of TQ to mice reduced the histological alterations caused by CLP in LT. TQ inhibited the plasma levels of ALT, AST and ALP in the CLP group. TQ significantly inhibited the elevation of p62, IL‑1β, IL‑6, MCP‑1 and TNF‑α levels as well as increased the LC3, beclin 1 and IL‑10 levels in LT. PI3K expression in the TQ + CLP group was significantly decreased compared with that in the CLP group. TQ treatment effectively modulated the expression levels of p62, LC3, beclin 1, PI3K and proinflammatory cytokines, and may be an important agent for the treatment of sepsis‑induced liver injury.
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September-2019
Volume 18 Issue 3

Print ISSN: 1792-0981
Online ISSN:1792-1015

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Spandidos Publications style
Wang F, Lei X, Zhao Y, Yu Q, Li Q, Zhao H and Pei Z: Protective role of thymoquinone in sepsis‑induced liver injury in BALB/c mice. Exp Ther Med 18: 1985-1992, 2019
APA
Wang, F., Lei, X., Zhao, Y., Yu, Q., Li, Q., Zhao, H., & Pei, Z. (2019). Protective role of thymoquinone in sepsis‑induced liver injury in BALB/c mice. Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine, 18, 1985-1992. https://doi.org/10.3892/etm.2019.7779
MLA
Wang, F., Lei, X., Zhao, Y., Yu, Q., Li, Q., Zhao, H., Pei, Z."Protective role of thymoquinone in sepsis‑induced liver injury in BALB/c mice". Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine 18.3 (2019): 1985-1992.
Chicago
Wang, F., Lei, X., Zhao, Y., Yu, Q., Li, Q., Zhao, H., Pei, Z."Protective role of thymoquinone in sepsis‑induced liver injury in BALB/c mice". Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine 18, no. 3 (2019): 1985-1992. https://doi.org/10.3892/etm.2019.7779