Advanced effect of curcumin and resveratrol on mitigating hepatic steatosis in metabolic associated fatty liver disease via the PI3K/AKT/mTOR and HIF-1/VEGF cascade.

Metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease that has no viable treatment. Curcumin (Cur) and resveratrol (Res) are two natural products that have been studied for their potential to ameliorate MAFLD. However, while these compounds have been investigated individually, their combined use and the potential for a synergistic or augmented effect remain unexplored. This study aims to investigate the effect of curcumin (Cur) and resveratrol (Res) as a potential combination therapy on MAFLD. Cur, Res and Cur+Res were tested in palmitic acid (PA)-induced-HepG2 cells. MAFLD model was established using Goto-Kakizaki rats. The animals were treated with vehicle control (model group), Cur (150 mg/kg), Res (150 mg/kg), Cur+Res (150 mg/kg, 8:2, w/w), or metformin (Met, positive control, 400 mg/kg/day) via oral gavage for 4 weeks. Wistar rats were used as the control group. Network pharmacology was conducted to elucidate the molecular actions of Cur and Res, followed by q-PCR and immunoblotting in vivo. Cur+Res exhibited synergistic effects in reducing triglyceride, total cholesterol and lipid accumulation in PA-induced HepG2 cells. The combination also markedly attenuated hepatic steatosis in the MAFLD rats. Network pharmacology illustrated that the interaction of Cur and Res was associated with the modulation of multiple molecular targets associated with the PI3K/AKT/mTOR and HIF-1 signaling pathways. Experimental results confirmed that Cur+Res nomalised the gene targets and protein expressions in the PI3K/AKT/mTOR and HIF-1 signaling pathways, including PI3K, mTOR, STAT-3, HIF-1α, and VEGF. The present study demonstrated an advanced effect of Cur and Res in combination to attenuate MAFLD, and the mechanism is at least partly associated with the modulation of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR and HIF-1 signaling pathways.

Mechanochemical synthesis of Fe2O3/Zn-Al layered double hydroxide based on red mud.

In this work, using industrial waste red mud (RM) as main starting material, a simple method of mechanochemical synthesis (MCS) was introduced as a green approach to synthesize heterogeneous Fe2O3/Zn-Al layered double hydroxide (F/ZA-LDH), which could be used as a new low-cost catalyst for photo-Fenton reaction. The optimum preparation conditions of F/ZA-LDH were as follows: mass ratio of Zn(NO3)2·6H2O to RM (mZn:mRM) 2:1, dry milling time 6 h, H2O dosage 2 mL, ball-to-powder mass ratio 50:1, and milling speed 250 rpm. The effects of the synthesis conditions on the crystal structure and catalytic activity of F/ZA-LDH were analyzed. The F/ZA-LDH was characterized by XRD, TG, XPS, SEM, (HR)TEM. The characterization results showed the composite had a crystallized hydrotalcite-like structure, and the crystalline phases in the optimum F/ZA-LDH were Fe2O3 and Zn-Al LDH. A hetero-interfaces between Fe2O3 and Zn-Al LDH existed in the synthesized Fe2O3/Zn-Al LDH composite. Furthermore, the possible mechanism for F/ZA-LDH formation in the MCS process was proposed. Overall, our results provide a systematic understanding of the preparation of LDH composite through MCS using RM as main material, and our findings help to develop green technology for reusing RM.