Protective effect of astaxanthin on myocardial injury induced by autologous liver transplantation in rats in conjunction with the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway
This study investigated astaxanthin's cardioprotective effects in rat autologous orthotopic liver transplantation. Male Wistar rats received astaxanthin (500 mg/kg) for two weeks before transplantation, with controls including sham, transplant-only, and astaxanthin plus all-trans retinoic acid groups. Astaxanthin pre-conditioning significantly reduced myocardial injury markers: IL-6 decreased 2.3-fold, cTnI decreased 1.8-fold, and TNF-α decreased 2.1-fold versus transplant controls. SOD activity increased 1.6-fold while MDA levels decreased 2.4-fold. The Bcl-2/Bax ratio improved 2.2-fold. All-trans retinoic acid negated these protective effects. Astaxanthin pre-conditioning alleviated myocardial injury via the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway, demonstrating therapeutic potential for cardiac protection during liver transplantation.
Authors
- Yiqi Weng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8878-1371)
- Shujun Lu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7978-8544)
- Yajing Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4034-0686)
Institutions
- Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (CN)
- Tianjin First Center Hospital (CN)
- First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (CN)
- Tianjin Medical University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Scientific Reports
- Published
- 2025-10-23
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-20732-0
- Primary Topic
- Liver Disease and Transplantation
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00