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Ko M, Kamimura K, Owaki T, Nagoya T, Sakai N, Nagayama I, Niwa Y, Shibata O, Oda C, Morita S, Kimura A, Inoue R, Setsu T, Sakamaki A, Yokoo T, Terai S. Modulation of serotonin in the gut-liver neural axis ameliorates the fatty and fibrotic changes in non-alcoholic fatty liver. Dis Model Mech 2021; 14:dmm048922. [PMID: 33787507 PMCID: PMC8084356 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.048922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2021] [Accepted: 02/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The etiology of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) consists of various factors, including neural signal pathways. However, the molecular mechanisms of the autonomic neural signals influencing NAFLD progression have not been elucidated. Therefore, we examined the involvement of the gut-liver neural axis in NAFLD development and tested the therapeutic effect of modulation of this axis in this study. To test the contribution of the gut-liver neural axis, we examined NAFLD progression with respect to body weight, hepatic steatosis, fibrosis, intestinal tight junction, microbiota and short-chain fatty acids in NAFLD models of choline-deficient defined L-amino-acid and high-fat diet-fed mice with or without blockades of autonomic nerves from the liver. Blockade of the neural signal from the liver to the gut in these NAFLD mice models ameliorated the progression of liver weight, hepatic steatosis and fibrosis by modulating serotonin expression in the small intestine. It was related to the severity of the liver pathology, the tight junction protein expression, microbiota diversity and short-chain fatty acids. These effects were reproduced by administrating serotonin antagonist, which ameliorated the NAFLD progression in the NAFLD mice models. Our study demonstrated that the gut-liver neural axis is involved in the etiologies of NAFLD progression and that serotonin expression through this signaling network is the key factor of this axis. Therefore, modulation of the gut-liver neural axis and serotonin antagonist ameliorates fatty and fibrotic changes in non-alcoholic fatty liver, and can be a potential therapeutic target of NAFLD.This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masayoshi Ko
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Kenya Kamimura
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
- Department of General Medicine, Niigata University School of Medicine, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Takashi Owaki
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Takuro Nagoya
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Norihiro Sakai
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Itsuo Nagayama
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Yusuke Niwa
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Osamu Shibata
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Chiyumi Oda
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Shinichi Morita
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Atsushi Kimura
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Ryosuke Inoue
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Toru Setsu
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Akira Sakamaki
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Takeshi Yokoo
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
| | - Shuji Terai
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, 951-8510, Japan
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