Abstract
Background: Hepatic schistosomiasis, a chronic liver injury induced by long-term Schistosoma japonicum (S. japonicum) infection, is characterized by egg granulomas and fibrotic pathology. Hepatic progenitor cells (HPCs), which are nearly absent and quiescent in normal liver, play vital roles in chronic and severe liver injury. But their role in the progression of liver injury during infection remained unknown.Methods: In this study, the hepatic egg granulomas, fibrosis and proliferation of HPCs were analyzed in S. japonicum infection mice model at different infection stages. For validating the role of HPCs in hepatic injury, TNFrelated weak inducer of apoptosis (TWEAK) and TWEAK blocking antibody were used to manipulate the proliferation of HPCs. Histologic pathology and the expression of IL-33 were examined. Results: We found that the proliferation of HPCs paralleled with inflammatory granulomas and fibrosis formation. Promoting HPCs expansion promote the liver regeneration and inhibit the hepatocytes injury, the inflammatory eggs granulomas and the deposition of fibrotic collagen. Interestingly, the expression of IL-33 decreased when HPCs were manipulated to proliferate. Thus, IL-33 might be involved in the liver repair dominated by HPCs. Conclusions: Collectively, our data uncovered a protective role of HPCs in hepatic schistosomiasis in an IL-33 related manner, which might provide a promising progenitor cell therapy for hepatic schistosomiasis.
Severe liver injury due to herbal and dietary supplements and the role of liver transplantation