STIGMASTEROL ATTENUATES INFLAMMATORY INJURY IN STEATOTIC HEPATOCYTES INDUCED BY OLEIC ACID AND LOW-DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN CHOLESTEROL

XIN Yan; LI Xiang; LIN Xiao-zhuan; ZHU Xuan; YUAN Qian-hua; GUO Hong-hui

Acta Nutrimenta Sinica ›› 2025, Vol. 47 ›› Issue (1) : 46-51.

XIN Yan, LI Xiang, LIN Xiao-zhuan, ZHU Xuan, YUAN Qian-hua, GUO Hong-hui

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Abstract

Objective To investigate the protective effect and the underlying mechanism of stigmasterol on inflammatory injury in steatotic hepatocytes induced by oleic acid and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). Methods LO2 cells were divided into 4 groups. The control group (CON) was cultured in the DMEM high-glucose medium, and the model group (MOD) was cultured in the DMEM high-glucose medium supplemented with 200 μmol/L oleic acid and 50 mg/L LDL-C for 36 h to induce the steatohepatitis cell model. In the stigmasterol intervention group (STG), 50 μmol/L of stigmasterol was added on the basis of the culture medium of the MOD group. In the transfection group (si-CYP7B1), 50 nmol/L of si-RNA was used to silence oxysterol 7α-hydroxylase (CYP7B1) gene expression in the STG-treated cells for 24 h. Results The contents of total cholesterol and free cholesterol in the STG group were significantly lower than those in the MOD group (P<0.05). The activities of alanine transaminase, aspartate aminotransferase and gene expression levels of NLRP3, caspase-1 and interleukin-1β in the STG group were significantly decreased compared with those in the MOD group (P<0.05). Compared with the MOD group, the relative mRNA expression levels of CYP7B1 and bile salt export pump in hepatocytes of the STG group were significantly increased (P<0.05). After CYP7B1 gene expression was specifically silenced by the si-RNA for CYP7B1, stigmasterol intervention no longer had significant effects on cellular cholesterol deposition and inflammatory injury. Conclusions tigmasterol alleviates cholesterol deposition in steatotic hepatocytes induced by oleic acid and LDL-C through increasing CYP7B1 expression and inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome signaling pathway activation, thereby protecting against cellular inflammatory injury.

Key words

stigmasterol / steatohepatitis / LO2 cells

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XIN Yan, LI Xiang, LIN Xiao-zhuan, ZHU Xuan, YUAN Qian-hua, GUO Hong-hui. STIGMASTEROL ATTENUATES INFLAMMATORY INJURY IN STEATOTIC HEPATOCYTES INDUCED BY OLEIC ACID AND LOW-DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN CHOLESTEROL[J]. Acta Nutrimenta Sinica. 2025, 47(1): 46-51

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