Fibrosis accelerates the development of enzyme-altered lesions in the rat liver

✍ Scribed by Isao Sakaida; Koji Hironaka; Koichi Uchida; Chieko Suzuki; Kozo Kayano; Kiwamu Okita

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1998
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 1017 KB
• Volume: 28
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0270-9139
• DOI: 10.1002/hep.510280512

✦ Synopsis

Injection of pig serum into rats twice a week for 8 weeks induced stellate cell activation resulting in liver fibrosis without parenchymal cell injury. Administration of a choline deficient L-amino acid defined (CDAA) diet for 6 weeks with or without pig serum pretreatment led to the development of preneoplastic lesions that were positive for the placental form of glutathione S-transferase (GSTP). Pig serum pretreatment induced more activated stellate cells in the livers of rats subsequently fed a CDAA diet for 6 weeks compared with rats fed the CDAA diet alone. Activated stellate cells were detected as smooth muscle actin (SMA)-positive cells and by the expression of SMA messenger RNA. These cells caused severe fibrosis as assessed by the hepatic hydroxyproline content. Pre-existing fibrosis induced by the activation of stellate cells with pig serum pretreatment increased hepatic malondialdehyde (MDA) level in parallel with GSTP-positive lesions. These results indicate that pre-existing fibrosis with the activated stellate cells accelerates the development of preneoplastic lesions in a CDAA diet model.