thapsigargin and stearic-acid

Lipid accumulation in non-adipose tissues leads to cell dysfunction and apoptosis, a phenomenon known as lipotoxicity. Unsaturated fatty acids may offset the lipotoxicity associated with saturated fatty acids. Stearic acid induced endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and caused apoptotic and necrotic cell death in the primary rat hepatocytes.. Cell viability was investigated using MTT assay, and apoptosis was evaluated with Hoechst 33342 staining. Western blot analysis was used to examine the changes in the expression levels of glucose regulated protein 78 (GRP78), glucose regulated protein 94 (GRP94), and C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP). Caspase-3 activity was evaluated using a Caspase-3 substrate kit.. We have studied the ability of α-linolenic acid to prevent endoplasmic reticulum stress-mediated apoptosis of rat hepatocytes elicited by stearic acid and thapsigargin. Incubation of primary rat hepatocytes for 16 h with stearic acid produced a significant increase in cell death. Stearic acid also increased levels of three indicators of ER stress -- GRP78, CHOP, and GRP94. α-Linolenic acid distinctly reduced cell death and levels of all three indicators of ER stress brought about by stearic acid. Thapsigargin, which induces ER stress produced similar effects to those obtained using stearic acid; its effects were partly reversed by α-linolenic acid.. These results suggest that α-linolenic acid prevents ER stress-mediated apoptosis of stearic acid lipotoxicity on primary rat hepatocytes might become a target to develop new antiapoptotic compounds in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Topics: alpha-Linolenic Acid; Animals; Apoptosis; Cells, Cultured; Endoplasmic Reticulum; Hepatocytes; Protective Agents; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Stearic Acids; Stress, Physiological; Thapsigargin

The fatty acids palmitic (C16:0), stearic (C18:0), arachidic (C20:0) and arachidonic (C20:4) acids inhibit Ca2+ uptake and enhance Ca2+ efflux measured in vesicles derived from the sarcoplasmic reticulum of skeletal muscle. These effects of the fatty acids are impaired by the Ca(2+)-ATPase ligands Mg2+, Ca2+ and K+, and by drugs that block the leakage of Ca2+ through the Ca(2+)-ATPase such as Ruthenium Red, spermine [de Meis (1991) J. Biol. Chem. 266, 5736-5742] and thapsigargin [de Meis and Inesi (1992) FEBS Lett. 299, 33-35].

Topics: Adenosine Triphosphate; Animals; Arachidonic Acid; Calcium; Calcium-Transporting ATPases; Eicosanoic Acids; Fatty Acids, Nonesterified; Kinetics; Lithium; Magnesium; Muscles; Palmitic Acid; Palmitic Acids; Potassium; Rabbits; Ruthenium Red; Sarcoplasmic Reticulum; Spermine; Stearic Acids; Terpenes; Thapsigargin