Liver Cirrhosis Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Liver Cirrhosis, including details on alcohol, treatment, drugs, effects, causes.

Effect of ribozyme against transforming growth factorbeta1 on biological character of activated HSCs.

Song YH, Zhou XM, Xue XN, Liu NZ, Tian de A, Kong XJ, Wu XL, Lin JS, Jin YX

Institute of Liver Diseases, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, Hubei Province, China.

Transforming growth factorbeta1 (TGFbeta1) is considered to be the principal contributor to liver fibrosis. So in this study the ribozymes against TGFbeta1 were designed. The in vitro cleavage activities of the ribozymes were assayed through incubation of (32)p-labeled target RNAs and (32)p-labeled ribozymes in different conditions. HSC-T6 cells were transfected with the eukaryotic constructs encoding ribozyme and disable ribozyme, then the stable cell clones were used to evaluate its antifibrotic characteristic through the effect of ribozyme on biological character of activated hepatic stellate cells (HSCs). The results demonstrated that two ribozymes (Rz803 and Rz1395) could cleave target RNAs into expected products effectively, Rz803 possessed better cleavage activity in vitro. Stable transfection of Rz803 into activated HSCs reduced TGFbeta1 expression in mRNA and protein level efficiently. The further studies demonstrated that Rz803 reduced deposition of collagen I, suppressed HSC proliferation, but had no effect on HSC activation in transfected HSC-T6 cells. Therefore, it indicated that Rz803 could reverse the character of activated HSCs by down-regulating TGFbeta1 expression efficiently and diminishing TGFbeta1 signaling underlying activation of hepatic stellate cells. As the consequence, it would provide a potential therapeutic approach for liver fibrosis.

Published 22 July 2005 in IUBMB Life, 57(1): 31-9.
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