Effects of Yiqi-huayu-huatan-yangyin preparation on the expression of fibroblast-specific protein 1 and protease activated receptor-2 in rats with liver fibrosis

Abstract:

Objective：To observe the effects of Yiqi-huayu-huatan-yangyin preparation on the liver histopathology and expression of fibroblast-specific protein 1（FSP1） and protease activated receptor -2（PAR-2） in liver fibrosis rats induced by CCl4. Methods：The SD rats were randomly divided into：normal group，model group，colchicines group and low/moderate /high dosages of Yiqi-huayu-hu－atan-yangyin preparation group. Rats in normal and model group were fed with normal saline，rats in colchicine group were fed with 0.1 mg/（kg·d） colchicine and rats in low/moderate/high dosages of Yiqi-huayu-huatan-yangyin preparation group were fed with Yiqi-huayu-huatan-yangyin[30，60，120 g/（kg·d）] correspondingly.Pathological changes of the liver tissues were observed by light microscopy. Activities of alanine aminotransferase（ALT），aspartate aminotransferase（AST） in liver tissues were evaluated by spec－trophotometry. Levels of hyaluronic acid（HA），typeⅣ collagen（CⅣ） in serum were determined using ELISA kit. Expression of FSP1 and PAR-2 mRNA and protein in the liver tissues was detected by qRT-PCR and Western blot. Results：（1）Levels of ALT，AST，HA and CⅣ in serum and fibrosis changes were increased significantly in model group compared with those in normal group（P<0.05） and the expression of FSP1 and PAR-2 mRNA and pro－tein of liver tissues were increased obviously（P<0.05）. （2）In－flammatory cell infiltration and liver fibrosis were lighter in treatment groups than in model group. Levels of ALT，AST，HA and CⅣ in serum and expression of FSP1 and PAR-2 mRNA and protein in liver tissues were slightly elevated in treatment groups（P<0.05）. Conclusion：Yiqi-huayu-huatan-yangyin preparation may protect the liver and delay the development of liver fibrosis by regulating the mRNA and protein expression of FSP1 and PAR-2.