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An RNAi therapeutic targeting hepatic DGAT2 in a genetically obese mouse model of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis.

ABSTRACT: Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is a severe liver disorder characterized by triglyceride accumulation, severe inflammation, and fibrosis. With the recent increase in prevalence, NASH is now the leading cause of liver transplant, with no approved therapeutics available. Although the exact molecular mechanism of NASH progression is not well understood, a widely held hypothesis is that fat accumulation is the primary driver of the disease. Therefore, diacylglycerol O-acyltransferase 2 (DGAT2), a key enzyme in triglyceride synthesis, has been explored as a NASH target. RNAi-based therapeutics is revolutionizing the treatment of liver diseases, with recent chemical advances supporting long-term gene silencing with single subcutaneous administration. Here, we identified a hyper-functional, fully chemically stabilized GalNAc-conjugated small interfering RNA (siRNA) targeting DGAT2 (Dgat2-1473) that, upon injection, elicits up to 3 months of DGAT2 silencing (>80%-90%, p < 0.0001) in wild-type and NSG-PiZ "humanized" mice. Using an obesity-driven mouse model of NASH (ob/ob-GAN), Dgat2-1473 administration prevents and reverses triglyceride accumulation (>85%, p < 0.0001) without increased accumulation of diglycerides, resulting in significant improvement of the fatty liver phenotype. However, surprisingly, the reduction in liver fat did not translate into a similar impact on inflammation and fibrosis. Thus, while Dgat2-1473 is a practical, long-lasting silencing agent for potential therapeutic attenuation of liver steatosis, combinatorial targeting of a second pathway may be necessary for therapeutic efficacy against NASH.

SUBMITTER: Yenilmez B

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8899521 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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An RNAi therapeutic targeting hepatic DGAT2 in a genetically obese mouse model of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis.

Yenilmez Batuhan B Wetoska Nicole N Kelly Mark M Echeverria Dimas D Min Kyounghee K Lifshitz Lawrence L Alterman Julia F JF Hassler Matthew R MR Hildebrand Samuel S DiMarzio Chloe C McHugh Nicholas N Vangjeli Lorenc L Sousa Jacquelyn J Pan Meixia M Han Xianlin X Brehm Michael A MA Khvorova Anastasia A Czech Michael P MP

Molecular therapy : the journal of the American Society of Gene Therapy 20211111 3

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is a severe liver disorder characterized by triglyceride accumulation, severe inflammation, and fibrosis. With the recent increase in prevalence, NASH is now the leading cause of liver transplant, with no approved therapeutics available. Although the exact molecular mechanism of NASH progression is not well understood, a widely held hypothesis is that fat accumulation is the primary driver of the disease. Therefore, diacylglycerol O-acyltransferase 2 (DGAT2), ...[more]

PMID: 34774753

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Project description:BackgroundEffective targeting therapies for common chronic liver disease nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) are in urgent need. MicroRNA-targeted therapeutics would be potentially an effective treatment strategy of hepatic diseases. Here we investigated the functional role of miR-221/222 and the therapeutic effects of antimiRs-221/222 in NASH mouse models.MethodsWe generated the miR-221/222flox/flox mice on a C57BL/6 J background and the hepatic miR-221/222 knockout (miR-221/222-LKO) mice. The mice were challenged with the methionine and choline deficient diet (MCDD) or chronic carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) treatment to generate experimental steatohepatitis models. Adenovirus-mediated re-expression of miR-221/222 was performed on the MCDD-fed miR-221/222-LKO mice. The MCDD and control diet-fed mice were treated with locked nucleic acid (LNA)-based antimiRs of miR-221/222 to evaluate the therapeutic effects. Histological analysis, RNA-seq, quantitative PCR and Western blot of liver tissues were carried out to study the hepatic lipid accumulation, inflammation and collagen deposition in mouse models.FindingsHepatic deletion of miR-221/222 resulted in significant reduction of liver fibrosis, lipid deposition and inflammatory infiltration in the MCDD-fed and CCl4-treated mouse models. The hepatic steatosis and fibrosis were dramatically aggravated by miR-221/222 re-expression in MCDD-fed miR-221/222-LKO mice. AntimiRs of miR-221/222 could effectively reduce the MCDD-mediated hepatic steatosis and fibrosis. Systematically mechanistic study revealed that hepatic miR-221/222 controlled the expression of target gene Timp3 and promoted the progression of NASH.InterpretationOur findings demonstrate that miR-221/222 are crucial for the regulation of lipid metabolism, inflammation and fibrosis in the liver. LNA-antimiRs targeted miR-221/222 could reduce steatohepatitis with prominent antifibrotic effect in NASH mice. FUND: This work is supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (81530020, 81390352 to Dr. Ning and 81522032 to Dr. Cao and 81670793 to Dr. Jiang); National Key Research and Development Program (No. 2016YFC0905001 and 2017YFC0909703 to Dr. Cao); the Shanghai Rising-Star Program (15QA1402900 to Dr. Cao); Shanghai Municipal Education Commission-Gaofeng Clinical Medicine Grant (20171905 to Dr. Jiang).

Dataset Information

An RNAi therapeutic targeting hepatic DGAT2 in a genetically obese mouse model of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis.

Publications

An RNAi therapeutic targeting hepatic DGAT2 in a genetically obese mouse model of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis.

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