Pegylated Interferon-α Modulates Liver Concentrations of Activin-A and Its Related Proteins in Normal Wistar Rat. (6th July 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Refaat, Bassem; El-Shemi, Adel Galal; Ashshi, Ahmed Mohamed; Mahamid, Elaf Wael; Al-Qadi, Noha Mohammed
• Other Names: Chen Limin Academic Editor.
• Is Part Of: Mediators of inflammation. Volume 2015(2015)
• Publication Date: 2015-07-06
• Subjects: Inflammation -- Mediators -- Periodicals; Biological response modifiers -- Periodicals; Inflammation (Pathologie) -- Médiateurs; Immunomodulateurs; Biological response modifiers; Inflammation -- Mediators; Immunology; Autacoids; Immunologic Factors; Cell Adhesion Molecules; Cell Communication; Cytokines; Inflammation; Periodicals; Electronic journals; 616.0473
• DOI: 10.1155/2015/414207
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0962-9351

Abstract

Abstract : Aims . To measure the expression of activin β A-subunit, activin IIA and IIB receptors, Smad4, Smad7, and follistatin in the liver and the liver and serum concentrations of mature activin-A and follistatin in normal rat following treatment with pegylated interferon- α (Peg-INF- α ) and ribavirin (RBV). Materials and Methods . 40 male Wistar rats were divided equally into 4 groups: "control, " "Peg-only" receiving 4 injections of Peg-INF- α (6 µ g/rat/week), "RBV-only" receiving ribavirin (4 mg/rat/day) orally, and "Peg & RBV" group receiving both drugs. The expression of candidate molecules in liver was measured by immunohistochemistry and quantitative PCR. The concentrations of mature proteins in serum and liver homogenate samples were measured using ELISA. Results . Peg-INF- α ± RBV altered the expression of all candidate molecules in the liver at the gene and protein levelsP < 0.05 and decreased activin-A and increased follistatin in serum and liver homogenates compared with the other groupsP < 0.05 . There were also significant correlations between serum and liver activin-A and follistatin. Conclusion . Peg-INF- α modulates the hepatic production of activin-A and follistatin, which can be detected in serum. Further studies are needed to explore the role of Peg-INF- α on the production of activins and follistatin by the liver and immune cells.