Regulatory Effect of Acaudina leucoprocta Peptides on Alcoholic Liver Injury and Intestinal Flora in Mice

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the regulatory effect of Acaudina leucoprocta peptides (ALPs) on alcoholic liver disease (ALD) and intestinal flora in mice. Methods: Totally 45 male C57BL/6N mice were randomly divided into normal, model, positive drug (silybin at 80 mg/(kg mb·d)), low-dose (200 mg/(kg mb·d) and high-dose (400 mg/(kg mb·d) ALPs groups. Acute liver injury in mice was induced by chronic alcohol consumption for three weeks. Afterwards, all mice were sacrificed, and serum and liver tissues were harvested for detecting biochemical indicators. The histomorphological changes of liver and colon tissues were observed under a microscope. The diversity of intestinal flora was analyzed by 16S rRNA sequencing of mouse feces. Results: ALPs could significantly improve liver and colon damage in mice, reduce the activities of serum alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) as markers of alcoholic liver injury, increase the activity of alcohol metabolism-related enzymes, effectively inhibit abnormal lipid accumulation in the liver of mice with ALD, and reduce the secretion of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interferon-γ (IFN-γ) and IL-6 as well as the content of the oxidative stress marker malondialdehyde (MDA). Furthermore, ALPs significantly improved the α-diversity and β-diversity of intestinal flora in mice, regulated the relative abundance of many phyla, classes and families, and alleviate alcohol-induced intestinal flora disorders in mice. Conclusion: ALPs have a significant protective effect on alcohol-induced liver injury in mice. The mechanism may be associated with the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity of ALPs and their improving effect on intestinal flora disorders.

Keywords

• acaudina leucoprocta; bioactive peptides; alcoholic liver disease; intestinal flora