Project description:Acetaminophen is a widely used antipyretic and analgesic drug, and its overdose is the leading cause of drug-induced acute liver failure. This study aimed to investigate the effect and mechanism of Lacticaseibacillus casei Shirota (LcS), an extensively used and highly studied probiotic, on acetaminophen-induced acute liver injury. C57BL/6 mice were gavaged with LcS suspension or saline once daily for 7 days before the acute liver injury was induced via intraperitoneal injection of 300 mg/kg acetaminophen. The results showed that LcS significantly decreased acetaminophen-induced liver and ileum injury, as demonstrated by reductions in the increases in aspartate aminotransferase, total bile acids, total bilirubin, indirect bilirubin and hepatic cell necrosis. Moreover, LcS alleviated the acetaminophen-induced intestinal mucosal permeability, elevation in serum IL-1α and lipopolysaccharide, and decreased levels of serum eosinophil chemokine (eotaxin) and hepatic glutathione levels. Furthermore, analysis of the gut microbiota and metabolome showed that LcS reduced the acetaminophen-enriched levels of Cyanobacteria, Oxyphotobacteria, long-chain fatty acids, cholesterol and sugars in the gut. Additionally, the transcriptome and proteomics showed that LcS mitigated the downregulation of metabolism and immune pathways as well as glutathione formation during acetaminophen-induced acute liver injury. This is the first study showing that pretreatment with LcS alleviates acetaminophen-enriched acute liver injury, and it provides a reference for the application of LcS.
