Wonhyo Seo

Abstract Reactive oxygen species (ROS) contribute to the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. ROS generation by infiltrating macrophages involves multiple mechanisms, including Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)-mediated NADPH oxidase (NOX) activation. Here, we show that palmitate-stimulated CD11b + F4/80 low hepatic infiltrating macrophages, but not CD11b + F4/80 high Kupffer cells, generate ROS via dynamin-mediated endocytosis of TLR4 and NOX2, independently from MyD88 and TRIF. We demon

Fructose intake is known to induce obesity, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). We aimed to evaluate the effects of fructose drinking on gut leakiness, endotoxemia, and NAFLD and study the underlying mechanisms in rats, mice, and T84 colon cells. Levels of ileum junctional proteins, oxidative stress markers, and apoptosis-related proteins in rodents, T84 colonic cells, and human ileums were determined by immunoblotting, immunoprecipitation, and i

Alcoholics with an ALDH2 polymorphism have an increased risk of digestive tract cancer development, however, the link between ALDH2 deficiency and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development has not been well established. In this study, we show that ALDH2 deficiency exacerbates alcohol-associated HCC development both in patients and mouse models. Mechanistic studies revealed that after chronic alcohol exposure, Aldh2-deficient hepatocytes produce a large amount of harmful oxidized mitochondrial D

Neutrophil infiltration around lipotoxic hepatocytes is a hallmark of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH); however, how these 2 types of cells communicate remains obscure. We have previously demonstrated that neutrophil-specific microRNA-223 (miR-223) is elevated in hepatocytes to limit NASH progression in obese mice. Here, we demonstrated that this elevation of miR-223 in hepatocytes was due to preferential uptake of miR-223-enriched extracellular vesicles (EVs) derived from neutrophils as well

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease encompasses a spectrum of diseases ranging from simple steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), cirrhosis, and liver cancer. At present, how simple steatosis progresses to NASH remains obscure and effective pharmacological therapies are lacking. Hepatic expression of C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 1 (CXCL1), a key chemokine for neutrophil infiltration (a hallmark of NASH), is highly elevated in NASH patients but not in fatty livers in

UNLABELLED: During liver injury, hepatocytes secrete exosomes that include diverse types of self-RNAs. Recently, self-noncoding RNA has been recognized as an activator of Toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3). However, the roles of hepatic exosomes and TLR3 in liver fibrosis are not yet fully understood. Following acute liver injury and early-stage liver fibrosis induced by a single or 2-week injection of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4 ), increased interleukin (IL)-17A production was detected primarily in hep

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) represents a spectrum of diseases ranging from simple steatosis to more severe forms of liver injury including nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), fibrosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In humans, only 20%-40% of patients with fatty liver progress to NASH, and mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD) develop fatty liver but are resistant to NASH development. To understand how simple steatosis progresses to NASH, we examined hepatic expression of anti-inflam

Background and Aims Mitochondrial double‐stranded RNA (mtdsRNA) and its innate immune responses have been reported previously; however, mtdsRNA generation and its effects on alcohol‐associated liver disease (ALD) remain unclear. Here, we report that hepatic mtdsRNA stimulates toll‐like receptor 3 (TLR3) in Kupffer cells through the exosome (Exo) to enhance interleukin (IL)‐17A (IL‐17A) production in ALD. Approach and Results Following binge ethanol (EtOH) drinking, IL‐17A production primarily in

Adipocyte death occurs under various physiopathological conditions, including obesity and alcohol drinking, and can trigger organ damage particularly in the liver, but the underlying mechanisms remain obscure. To explore these mechanisms, we developed a mouse model of inducible adipocyte death by overexpressing the human CD59 (hCD59) on adipocytes (adipocyte-specific hCD59 transgenic mice). Injection of these mice with intermedilysin (ILY), which rapidly lyses hCD59 expressing cells exclusively

Background and Aims Neutrophil infiltration is a hallmark of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), but how this occurs during the progression from steatosis to NASH remains obscure. Human NASH features hepatic neutrophil infiltration and up‐regulation of major neutrophil‐recruiting chemokines (e.g., chemokine [C‐X‐C motif] ligand 1 [CXCL1] and interleukin [IL]‐8). However, mice fed a high‐fat diet (HFD) only develop fatty liver without significant neutrophil infiltration or elevation of chemokine

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Binge drinking in patients with metabolic syndrome accelerates the development of alcohol-associated liver disease. However, the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. We investigated if oxidative and nonoxidative alcohol metabolism pathways, diet-induced obesity, and adipose tissues influenced the development of acute liver injury in a single ethanol binge model. METHODS: A single ethanol binge was administered to chow-fed or high-fat diet (HFD)-fed wild-type and genetically m