Description
Astaxanthin alleviates hepatic lipid accumulation and peroxidation, inflammation, and fibrosis in mice with high-cholesterol, high-cholate, and high-fat (CL) diet-induced nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). It has been proposed as a potential new treatment to inhibit the progression of NASH in humans. Therefore, we compared hepatic gene expression profiles after treatment with astaxanthin or the antioxidant vitamin E in mice with CL diet-induced NASH. Comprehensive gene expression analyses of the livers of mice fed a standard, CL, or CL diet containing astaxanthin or vitamin E for 12 weeks were performed using a DNA microarray. Both astaxanthin and vitamin E effectively improved gene expression associated with eukaryotic initiation factor-2 (EIF2) signaling, which is suppressed in NASH by endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in the liver.