Role of Beta-1 adrenergic receptor in non-alcoholic fatty Liver Disease

• Grant number: 11/19646-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: December 01, 2011
• End date: November 30, 2012
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Physiology - Physiology of Organs and Systems
• Principal Investigator: Miriam Oliveira Ribeiro
• Grantee: Cícera Pimenta Marcelino
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde (CCBS). Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie (UPM). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Obesity is a multifactorial disorder that contributes to the emergence of various metabolic and is directly related to metabolic syndrome, which includes a set of risk factors for the development of several other disorders such as cardiovascular disease and Non-Alcoholic Liver Disease (NAFLD), which is characterized by the development of macrovesicular steatosis in the absence of significant consumption of alcohol, which can progress to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which causes inflammation, fibrogenesis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. The development of NASH is associated with the emergence of changes in the levels of several transcription factors that play key roles in regulating lipid metabolism in the liver. Thus, the study of the physiological role of these factors and their role in the development of NAFLD provides a greater understanding about the regulatory mechanisms of the disease. The ²1 adrenergic receptor appears to significantly influence the metabolism of fats and may be related to the gene expression of factors related to development of NAFLD. Thus, in order to determine the influence of the ²1 adrenergic receptor in the development of NAFLD and the expression of factors related to lipid metabolism in the liver, will be analyzed physiological, biochemical and molecular parameters in the liver of knockout mice for this receptor, including levels cholesterol, triglyceride, TNF and ALT, glucose and insulin tolerance, and histological analysis of samples of liver and white adipose tissue (WAT).(AU)