Alcoholic liver fibrosis (ALF) is characterized by hyperplasia of extracellular matrix under long-term alcohol stimulation. Hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation plays an important role in promoting hepatic fibrogenesis. Caffeine, as the main active component of coffee and tea, was widely consumed in daily life. It was always a thought that caffeine can reduce the probability of suffering from liver diseases. In this study, we attempt to validate the hypothesis that caffeine inhibits activation of HSCs which were isolated from rat ALF model. The rats were gavaged by ethanol to establish ALF model and then treated with different concentrations of caffeine or colchicine. Serum was collected to measure the contents of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), hyaluronic acid (HA), laminin (LN), N-terminal peptide of type III procollagen (PIIINP) and type IV collagen (CIV). Then liver tissues were obtained for hematoxylin-eosin staining and Sirius-red staining. Others were treated through liver perfusion to isolate primary rat HSCs. Interestingly, we found that caffeine significantly decreased ALT, AST, HA, LN, PIIINP and CIV levels and reversed liver fibrosis in rat ALF models. Results of immunohistochemistry, real-time PCR and western blot indicated that caffeine could reduce fibrosis and inhibit cAMP/PKA/CREB signal pathway in HSC. Caffeine has a preventive effect on ALF. The mechanism may be interpreted that caffeine inhibits the cAMP/PKA/CREB signal pathway through adenosine A2A receptors in HSC.

The fibrosis can occur in many kinds of organs,and its sustained progress may lead to organ structural damage and functional decline,and even the organ failure,which threatens the human health and the life seriously.Adenosine is an endogenous purine nucleoside that can be generated in various tissues of the body and regulate a multitude of body functions via the combina-tion with four different kinds of G protein-coupled receptors.Re-cent studies have found that adenosine receptors play an impor-tant role in regeneration tissue and fibrosis process.To under-stand the processes may be helpful to the treatment of fibrosis diseases.This review makes a summary on latest research pro-gress of adenosine receptors in fibrosis diseases.

The present study was undertaken to investigate the mechanism by which adenosine receptors (ARs)-mediated the cAMP/PKA/CREB signal pathway regulates the activation of acetaldehyde-induced hepatic stellate cells (HSCs). Primary HSCs were isolated from SD rats, cultured in vitro, and activated with different concentrations of acetaldehyde at different time points. Quantitative real-time PCR and Western blotting were used to quantify both protein and mRNA levels of the four AR (A1R, A2AR, A2BR, and A3R) in rat HSCs. Selective inhibitors of PDEs and the Gi/o protein pathway, general AR agonists, and AR subtype specific agents were used to study the AR signaling. The level of cAMP was measured by radio-immunoassay, and the expression of α-SMA, collagen type I and III, PKA and p-CREB were also detected by Western blotting. Acetaldehyde could significantly promote HSC proliferation, with a maximum stimulatory effect observed at 48 h after exposure to 200 μM acetaldehyde. All four AR subtypes could be present in rat HSCs, and the mRNA and protein expression levels for A2AR and A1R in much greater abundance than those for A2BR and A3R. The expression of A2AR and A1R was significantly increased in acetaldehyde-induced HSCs as compared with that of control group, whereas the expression of A2BR and A3R remained unaffected by the addition of acetaldehyde. Curiously, there is coupling of A2AR to the Gs-AC signaling, as well as coupling of A1R to the Gi/o-AC signaling pathway in acetaldehyde-induced HSCs. Both the A2AR and A1R antagonists could suppress the activation of HSC, although they have opposing effects on cAMP signal transduction. These results suggested that a combination of cAMP/PKA/CREB signals via A2AR and A1R likely mediate the activation of acetaldehyde-induced HSCs, and A1R coupled to the Gi/o-AC signaling pathway may be masked by the more predominant A2AR that coupled to the Gs-AC signaling pathway.

This study evaluated the association between free fatty acid (FFA), ROS generation, mitochondrial dysfunction and bone mineral density (BMD) in type 2 diabetic patients and investigated the molecular mechanism. db/db and high fat (HF)-fed mice were treated by Etomoxir, an inhibitor of CPT1, MitoQ, and PFT-α, an inhibitor of P53. Bone metabolic factors were assessed and BMSCs were isolated and induced to osteogenic differentiation. FFA, lipid peroxidation and mtDNA copy number were correlated with BMD in T2DM patients. Etomoxir, MitoQ and PFT-α significantly inhibited the decrease of BMD and bone breaking strength in db/db and HF-fed mice and suppressed the reduction of BMSCs-differentiated osteoblasts. Etomoxir and MitoQ, but not PFT-α, inhibited the increase of mitochondrial ROS generation in db/db and HF-fed mice and osteoblasts. In addition, Etomoxir, MitoQ and PFT-α significantly inhibited mitochondrial dysfunction in osteoblasts. Moreover, mitochondrial apoptosis was activated in osteoblasts derived from db/db and HF-fed mice, which was inhibited by Etomoxir, MitoQ and PFT-α. Furthermore, mitochondrial accumulation of P53 recruited Bax and initiated molecular events of apoptotic events. These results demonstrated that fatty acid oxidation resulted in ROS generation, activating P53/Bax-mediated mitochondrial apoptosis, leading to reduction of osteogenic differentiation and bone loss in T2DM.

Aim To investigate the influence of down-regulating adenosine A1 receptor and adenosine A2 A receptor gene expression on proliferation and activation of acetaldehyde-induced hepatic stellate cell-T6 cells through siRNA. Methods Alcoholic liver fibrosis in vitro model was constructed by inducing HSC-T6 cells with acetaldehyde. siRNA targeting A1R and A2AR were designed and synthesized according to its mRNA. The siRNA was transfected into rat HSC-T6 cells by li-posome LipofectamineTM 2000. HSC cell proliferation was measured by MTT. The mRNA levels of A1R, A2AR, α-SMA, Collagen I in the supernatant of the cell culture were measured by Quantitative Real-Time PCR. The protein levels of A1R, A2AR, α-SMA, Collagen I were measured by Western blot. Results A1 R and A2 AR siRNA effectively inhibited the cell proliferation, and they also significantly decreased the levels of A1R, A2AR,α-SMA, Collagen I, suggesting that A1 R and A2 AR might be potential target genes in the alcoholic liver fibrosis. Conclusions Silencing A1 R or A2 AR by RNAi can significantly inhibit the HSC proliferation, A1R and A2AR may be potential therapeutic target genes for alcoholic liver fibrosis.

Hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation is an essential event during alcoholic liver fibrosis. Evidence suggests that adenosine aggravates liver fibrosis via the adenosine A2A receptor (A2AR). Caffeine, which is being widely consumed during daily life, inhibits the action of adenosine. In this study, we attempted to validate the hypothesis that caffeine influences acetaldehyde-induced HSC activation by acting on A2AR. Acetaldehyde at 50, 100, 200, and 400 μM significantly increased HSC-T6 cells proliferation, and cell proliferation reached a maximum at 48 h after exposure to 200 μM acetaldehyde. Caffeine and the A2AR antagonist ZM241385 decreased the cell viability and inhibited the expression of procollagen type I and type III in acetaldehyde-induced HSC-T6 cells. In addition, the inhibitory effect of caffeine on the expression of procollagen type I was regulated by A2AR-mediated signal pathway involving cAMP, PKA, SRC, and ERK1/2. Interestingly, caffeine's inhibitory effect on the expression of procollagen type III may depend upon the A2AR-mediated P38 MAPK-dependent pathway. Conclusions: Caffeine significantly inhibited acetaldehyde-induced HSC-T6 cells activation by distinct A2AR mediated signal pathway via inhibition of cAMP-PKA-SRC-ERK1/2 for procollagen type I and via P38 MAPK for procollagen type III.