Pathophysiology of CLD: Oxidative Stress and Antioxidant Mechanisms that may Limit its Progression
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Chronic liver disease (CLD) represents a progressive condition culminating in fibrosis and, ultimately, cirrhosis or hepatocellular carcinoma. A growing body of evidence implicates oxidative and nitrosative stress as key mediators in the pathogenesis of CLD.
OBJECTIVE: This review aims to summarize the role of oxidative stress in CLD progression and to highlight therapeutic strategies targeting redox imbalance and related signaling pathways.
METHODS: Relevant literature from preclinical and clinical studies was reviewed, with emphasis on mechanisms of oxidative and nitrosative stress, signaling pathways involved in fibrogenesis, and emerging therapeutic interventions targeting redox imbalance and the gut-liver axis.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Reactive oxygen and nitrogen species contribute to hepatocyte damage, hepatic stellate cell activation, and extracellular matrix accumulation. Mitochondrial dysfunction, endoplasmic reticulum stress, and disrupted redox homeostasis induce tissue injury and fibrogenesis. Various signaling pathways, including Nrf2/Keap1, AMPK/SIRT1, JNK, PI3K/Akt/mTOR, and TGF-β/SMAD, serve as critical links between oxidative imbalance and fibrotic progression. The antifibrotic potential of antioxidants such as vitamin E, lipoic acid, berberine, and polyphenolic compounds is increasingly validated in preclinical and clinical studies. Additionally, modulation of NOX enzymes and support of endogenous defenses offer promising therapeutic avenues.…
Read the paper
Related studies
- Bile Acid 7α-Dehydroxylating Gut Bacteria Secrete Antibiotics that Inhibit Clostridium difficile: Role of Secondary Bile Acids
- Ketogenic diet alleviates colitis by reduction of colonic group 3 innate lymphoid cells through altering gut microbiome
- Altered gut microbiome composition and function are associated with gut barrier dysfunction in healthy relatives of patients with Crohn's disease
- Diet, obesity, and the gut microbiome as determinants modulating metabolic outcomes in a non-human primate model
- Immune Impairment Associated with Vitamin A Deficiency: Insights from Clinical Studies and Animal Model Research
- Glyphosate-based herbicides influence antioxidants, reproductive hormones and gut microbiome but not reproduction: A long-term experiment in an avian model
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.