Shuaijun Peng,Ruiqin Sun,Hui Liu,Baoying Wang,Yucheng Li
Gastric mucosal injury can lead to significant gastrointestinal disorders, including inflammation, ulcers, and intestinal metaplasia in severe cases. Although bile acids are known contributors to mucosal damage due to their acidity, the role of chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA), a primary bile acid, in gastric mucosal injury remains unclear. This study investigates the role of CDCA in inducing gastric mucosal injury and its underlying mechanisms, with a focus on apoptosis and FXR activation, to identify potential therapeutic targets. Mice were administered varying doses of CDCA to evaluate changes in body weight, food intake, and gastric mucosal pathology using hematoxylin-eosin (HE) and alcian blue-periodic acid-Schiff (AB-PAS) staining. Expression levels of apoptosis-related genes (BAX, BCL-2) and the intestinal metaplasia marker gene (CDX2) were analyzed via RT-PCR and Western blotting (WB). GES-1 cells were treated with different CDCA concentrations to assess cell viability via the CCK-8 assay. Apoptosis rates were measured using flow cytometry, and FXR inhibitors were applied to examine their impact on CDCA-induced effects. CDCA administration in mice resulted in weight loss, reduced food and water intake, gastric epithelial shedding, and intestinal metaplasia. CDCA exposure upregulated Bax and CDX2 expression, while reducing BCL-2 levels. In vitro, CDCA inhibited GES-1 cell viability and increased apoptosis rates, effects that were reversed by FXR inhibition. CDCA induces gastric mucosal injury through apoptosis and FXR activation. These findings provide insights into the mechanisms of bile acid-mediated mucosal damage and highlight FXR as a potential therapeutic target for gastric mucosal disorders.
Acetaminophen (APAP) intake leads to excessive NAPQI deposition, stimulating inflammatory and oxidative stress and causing fatal liver injury. However, the detailed molecular mechanism involved is unknown, and effective therapeutic approaches remain insufficient. In this study, we discovered that treatment with ginsenoside Rc can prevent the inflammatory response caused by APAP and oxidative stress in mouse primary hepatocytes (MPHs), along with the corresponding changes in related genes. Additionally, Ginsenoside Rc effectively alleviates APAP-induced cellular apoptosis and NAPQI accumulation in MPHs. In vivo , Ginsenoside Rc administration remarkably attenuates APAP-induced hepatotoxicity, repairing liver damage and improving survival. Moreover, Ginsenoside Rc treatment modulates genes involved in APAP metabolism, leading to a decrease in NAPQI and resulting in the alleviation of fatal oxidative stress and inflammatory response after APAP exposure, along with the expression of their related indicators. Furthermore, our RNA-seq and molecular docking analysis implies that FXR expression and FXR transcriptional activity are stimulated by Ginsenoside Rc treatment. Notably, due to the lack of FXR in mice and MPHs, ginsenoside Rc can no longer play its original protective role against hepatotoxicity and cell damage caused by APAP, and it is difficult to improve the corresponding survival rate and prevent hepatic apoptosis, NAPQI generation, fatal oxidative stress, and the inflammatory response induced by APAP and the expression of related genes. In summary, our results indicate that Ginsenoside Rc could act as an effective FXR activator and effectively regulate FXR-induced antioxidant stress and eliminate inflammation while also having an anti-apoptotic function.