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Updated: May 12, 2026
05:53
Use of a Hanging-weight System for Liver Ischemia in Mice
Published on: August 7, 2012
Cold-induced liver dysfunction drives cardiac damage through a liver-heart axis
Jing Feng1, Tong Zhao1, Lina Yao1
1State Key Laboratory of Frigid Zone Cardiovascular Diseases (SKLFZCD), Department of Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, and Department of Cardiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, 150081, China; State Key Laboratory-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics of China, and Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Research, Ministry of Education, College of Pharmacy, Harbin, 150081, China; Research Unit of Noninfectious Chronic Diseases in Frigid Zone (2019RU070), Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Harbin, 150081, China.
European Journal of Pharmacology
|May 10, 2026
Summary
Cold exposure harms the heart by causing liver injury and metabolic issues. The liver
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Medicine
- Hepatology
- Environmental Health
Background:
- Cold environments are established risk factors for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs).
- The liver's role in cold-induced CVD pathogenesis is not well understood.
- Understanding liver-heart crosstalk is crucial for managing cold-related cardiac conditions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the liver's role in cardiac damage in cold regions.
- To identify mechanisms linking cold exposure, liver dysfunction, and CVD.
Main Methods:
- Integrated clinical cohort studies, bioinformatic analysis, and animal experiments.
- Analyzed serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels in cold-exposed populations.
- Performed transcriptomic analysis on mouse liver tissues and in vitro co-culture experiments.
Main Results:
- Elevated serum ALT independently predicted heart failure in cold-exposed individuals.
- Chronic cold exposure induced liver injury, dyslipidemia, and cardiac remodeling in mice.
- Activated hepatic cell cycle signaling and paracrine factors from hepatocytes contributed to cardiomyocyte injury.
Conclusions:
- Liver injury is an independent risk factor for CVDs in cold regions.
- Chronic cold stress disrupts liver metabolism and activates cell cycle signaling.
- Liver-heart crosstalk mediated by metabolic and signaling pathways contributes to cold-induced cardiac injury.
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