Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity (Oct 2021)
QSHY Granules Promote White Adipose Tissue Browning and Correct BCAAs Metabolic Disorder in NAFLD Mice
Abstract
Binbin Zhang,1– 3 Mingzhu Ni,1 Xiaojing Li,1 Qiaohong Liu,1 Yiyang Hu,1,4 Yu Zhao1 1Key Laboratory of Liver and Kidney Diseases (Ministry of Education), Institute of Liver Diseases, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Clinical Medicine, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Translational Medicine Platform, The Affiliated Hospital of Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China; 3College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China; 4Institute of Clinical Pharmacology, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Yiyang HuInstitute of Clinical Pharmacology, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 528, Zhangheng Road, Shanghai, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail [email protected] ZhaoKey Laboratory of Liver and Kidney Diseases (Ministry of Education), Institute of Liver Diseases, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Clinical Medicine, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 528, Zhangheng Road, Shanghai, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail [email protected]: White adipose tissue (WAT) has positive effects on peripheral metabolism parameters and liver energy metabolism. This study aimed to explain the pharmacological mechanism of Qushi Huayu (QSHY) granules in the treatment of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NALFD) mice based on branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) catabolism and WAT browning.Patients and Methods: Thirty C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into a (Ctrl) control group, fed with a control diet, a NAFLD model group, fed with a high-fat and high-sugar (HFHS) diet, and a QSHY granules treatment (HFHS+QSHY) group, administered with QSHY granules. After 14 weeks of feeding, HFHS+QSHY group mice were administered QSHY granules through oral gavage for 6 weeks. The metabolic parameters were assessed, the circular and fecal BCAA content was observed, and liver and epididymal WAT (eWAT) were collected for pathological, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, and Western blotting analyses.Results: Compared with the HFHS group, mice in the HFHS+QSHY group demonstrated restored liver histological changes, ameliorated hepatocyte steatosis, and alleviated inflammatory cell infiltration. Consistent with the pathological changes, QSHY granules significantly reduced the elevated levels of liver triglycerides, and serum alanine aminotransferase, and it relieved hypercholesterolemia and insulin resistance in mice with HFHS-induced NAFLD. Furthermore, it corrected BCAA metabolic disorders in serum and feces and promoted the expression of BCAA catabolic genes in the eWAT of HFHS mice. QSHY granules also increased the expression of phosphorylated AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) protein, up-regulating the protein expression of the AMPK/SIRT1/UCP-1 pathway in the eWAT.Conclusion: QSHY granules improved hepatic steatosis and corrected the BCAA disorder in NAFLD mice, and the related mechanisms regulated the AMPK/SIRT1/UCP-1 pathway and promoted WAT browning.Keywords: nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, branched chain amino acids, white adipose tissue, browning, traditional Chinese medicine
