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Updated: Jun 27, 2025
Induction of Drug-Induced, Autoimmune Hepatitis in BALB/c Mice for the Study of Its Pathogenic Mechanisms
Published on: May 29, 2020
Guizhi Fuling Wan ameliorates concanavalin A-induced autoimmune hepatitis in mice
Shun-Li Kuo1, Chun-Han Su2, Kuei-Hung Lai3
1Graduate Institute of Clinical Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan; Division of Chinese Medicine Obstetrics and Gynecology, Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan, Taiwan; School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
Background:
Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is an immune-mediated hepatic disease associated with intense complications. AIH is more common in females and needs effective drugs to treat. Guizhi Fuling Wan (GZFLW) is a traditional Chinese herbal formula for treating various gynecologic diseases. In this study, we aim to extend the new use of GZFLW for AIH.
Methods:
The tandem MS-based analysis was used to identify secondary metabolites in GZFLW. Therapeutic effects of GZFLW were tested in a concanavalin A (Con A)-induced AIH model in mice. Ethnopharmacological mechanisms underlying the antiapoptotic, antioxidant, and immunomodulatory protective effects were determined.
Results:
Oral administration of GZFLW attenuates AIH in a Con A-induced hepatotoxic model in vivo. The tandem MS-based analysis identified 15 secondary metabolites in GZFLW. The Con A-induced AIH syndromes, including hepatic apoptosis, inflammation, reactive oxygen species accumulation, function failure, and mortality, were significantly alleviated by GZFLW in mice. Mechanistically, GZFLW restrained the caspase-dependent apoptosis, restored the antioxidant system, and decreased pro-inflammatory cytokine production in the livers of Con A-treated mice. Besides, GZFLW repressed the Con A-induced hepatic infiltration of inflammatory cells, splenic T cell activation, and splenomegaly in mice.
Conclusions:
Our findings demonstrate the applicable potential of GZFLW in treating AIH. It prompts further investigation of GZFLW as a treatment option for AIH and possibly other hepatic diseases.
