Impact of Galectin-3 Inhibition on Reversal of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis in an Experimental Model

• Grant number: 23/06553-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: November 01, 2024
• End date: August 31, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Physiology - Physiology of Organs and Systems
• Principal Investigator: João Paulo Gabriel Camporez
• Grantee: Anne Raissa Melo Santos
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto (FMRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Sedentary lifestyle and increased consumption of high-fat diet contribute largely to the development of obesity, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes (DM2) and cardiovascular diseases. Several mechanisms are currently considered to cause insulin resistance, such as abnormal metabolism and ectopic accumulation of lipids, mitochondrial dysfunction, in addition to inflammation and endoplasmic reticulum stress. One of the consequences of the Western lifestyle and high-fat diet is Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD), which affects about 30% of adults and up to 10% of children in developed countries. The progression of NAFLD is its evolution to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which is characterized by macro and/or microvesicular steatosis, mixed lobular inflammatory infiltrate and hepatocellular ballooning, and may present with fibrosis and Mallory's corpuscles. Furthermore, with the increasing prevalence of NASH, this pathology has become one of the main etiological factors of hepatocellular cancer (HCC) and liver transplantation. Still, there is no specific treatment indicated for NASH. Thus, the general objective of this project is to study the therapeutic potential of Modified Citrus Pectin (MCP), which is considered a functional food and has the action of inhibiting Galectin-3 (Gal-3), NASH and hepatic insulin resistance.