Potential use of PPAR-gamma agonist in the treatment of liver fibrosis in rats induced by selective bile duct ligation

Abstract

Several chronic liver diseases lead to development of hepatic fibrosis and progression to cirrhosis. In childhood, biliary obstruction caused by biliary atresia (BA) can lead to cirrhosis. When BA is diagnosed early, babies are submitted to Kasai portoenterostomy, however, even when patient becomes anicteric, cirrhosis continues to progress and liver transplantation is necessary. So, liver transplantation has established as the definitive treatment to children with advanced cirrhosis caused by BA. Nevertheless, the liver transplantation still represent a complex procedure. Biliary complications, like intra-and extra-hepatic stenosis may lead to biliary cirrhosis. It is observed that, even segmental biliary stenosis may affect the other well-drained liver segments, leading to cirrhosis of the hole organ and need for retransplantation. Recently, it has been demonstrated that PPAR-gama agonist has protective effects during tissue repair, modulating the production of pro-inflammatory and pro-fibrogenic mediators. In this context, the aim of the present study is to evaluate the potential use of PPAR-gama agonist in treating hepatic fibrosis induced in experimental selective biliary obstruction model. The samples will be submitted to biochemical, histological and imunoistochemical analyses for the evaluation of regulating factors of fibrogenic process. (AU)