UCLA

BACKGROUND:Hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) is a severe complication in liver transplantation, hepatectomy and hemorrhagic shock. As neuropeptides transmit the regulatory signal between nervous-immune systems communication, our previous study documented that pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptides (PACAP) depressed hepatic TLR4 immune response in liver IRI. METHODS:Here, we focused on how PACAP suppressed hepatocellular damage and enhanced hepatocyte regeneration in a murine model of partial liver warm IRI. RESULTS:Yes-associated protein (YAP), a cellular modulator of tissue regeneration, was readily induced in WT IR-livers. As its induction was failed in PACAP-deficient livers, PACAP supplement enhanced YAP expression in WT mouse, promoted its nuclear translocation and downstream anti-oxidative/regenerative genes expression both in vivo and in vitro. Further, verteporfin (VP), a YAP transcriptional inhibitor, abolished PACAP-mediated hepatoprotection significantly. Meanwhile, blockade of PKA-CREB signaling recreated liver damage in PACAP-protected liver, as well as impeded stimulation on YAP and its downstream gene expressions. Consistently, inhibition of PKA-CREB decreased PACAP promoted YAP expression in primary hepatocytes culture, and made them vulnerable to H2O2 stress in vitro. In addition, lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), another Hippo pathway inhibitor, failed to affect PACAP-mediated hepatoprotection or hepatocellular YAP induction. This implies that PACAP regulated YAP through PKA-CREB pathway at the transcriptional level rather than canonical hippo pathway. CONCLUSION:Our study discovered the neural modulation of PACAP-YAP axis in hepatic cytoprotection and homeostasis in liver IRI. These reveal a novel insight of neuropeptide PACAP in combating liver IRI in clinical patients.