The Role of Hepatic Cholesterol Crystals and NLRP3 Inflammasome in ABCG5/G8-deficient Mice

The NLRP3 inflammasome plays an important role in metabolic fatty liver diseases (MAFLD). Hepatic damage is attributed, at least in part, to the accumulation of lipid molecules and/or cholesterol crystals. During non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) Nlrp3 is upregulated, leading to hepatic inflammation and progression to liver fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. The hepatobiliary cholesterol transporter Abcg5/g8 protects the hepatocyte from cholesterol overload and is an important mediator of whole-body cholesterol homeostasis. The aim of the present study was to analyze the sterile inflammatory response by NLRP3/IL-1b in liver- and intestine-specific ABCG5/G8-deficient mice.