Effect of moderate exercises and curcumin on hepatic transcriptional factors associated with lipid metabolism and steatosis in elderly male rat

Minoo Shirpoor; Asghar Tofighi; Alireza Shirpoor; Masoumeh Pourjabali; Leila Chodari

doi:10.4103/1735-5362.314828

Effect of moderate exercises and curcumin on hepatic transcriptional factors associated with lipid metabolism and steatosis in elderly male rat

Res Pharm Sci. 2021 May 12;16(3):294-304. doi: 10.4103/1735-5362.314828. eCollection 2021 Jun.

Authors

Minoo Shirpoor¹, Asghar Tofighi¹, Alireza Shirpoor^{2

3}, Masoumeh Pourjabali⁴, Leila Chodari²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Exercise Physiology and Corrective Movements, Faculty of Sport Sciences, Urmia University, Urmia, I.R. Iran.
² Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Urmia University of Medical Sciences, Urmia, I.R. Iran.
³ Nephrology and Kidney Transplant Research Center, Clinical Research Institute, Urmia University of Medical Science, Urmia, I.R. Iran.
⁴ Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Urmia University of Medical Sciences, Urmia, I.R. Iran.

Abstract

Background and purpose: The specific molecular mediators involved in dyslipidemia in older people are not yet clearly understood. The current study was, thus, an attempt to investigate whether moderate aerobic exercises and curcumin administration alleviates the abnormalities caused by aging in the rats' liver.

Experimental approach: Thirty-two eight-year-old young rats were classified into five groups, namely, young control, aged control, aged-curcumin, aged-exercise, and aged-curcumin-exercise co-treatment. The rats in the exercise groups were trained on an animal treadmill for 60 min/day five times per week for eight weeks.

Findings/results: The results revealed a significant increase in FAT/CD36, PTP1B, significantly decreased HNF4α genes expression, increase in LDL and cholesterol in the aged group compared to the young control. Compared to those in the young control group, no significant changes in HDL and TG amounts in the aged control were observed. Moreover, compared to the young control, the aged group showed liver histological changes such as fibrosis and mild or grade 1 steatohepatitis. Moderate aerobic exercise and curcumin alone or in combination completely masked this effect.

Conclusion and implications: The findings revealed dyslipidemia and liver steatosis related to aging might be partly associated with changes in hepatic transcriptional factors which can be mitigated via moderate aerobic exercise and curcumin.

Keywords: Aerobic exercise; Curcumin; FAT/CD36; PTP1B; Rat; Steatosis.