The effects of pegylated interferon-α and ribavirin on liver and serum concentrations of activin-A and follistatin in normal Wistar rat: a preliminary report

Abstract

BackgroundActivin-A and follistatin regulate the liver and the immune system.AimsTo measure the effects of treatment with pegylated-interferon-α (Peg-IFN-α) and ribavirin on the concentrations of mature activin-A and follistatin in serum and liver tissue homogenates in rats.MethodsA total of 28 male Wistar rats were divided equally into four groups as follow: ‘Control group’ (n = 7), ‘PEG only group’ consisted of those that only received a weekly injection of Peg-IFN-α (6 µg/rat) for 4 weeks, ‘RBV only group’ received ribavirin only (4 mg/rat/day) orally for 35 days and the last group received both Peg-IFN-α and ribavirin ‘PEG & RBV group’. The concentrations of candidate proteins in serum and liver samples were measured using ELISA.ResultsPegylated-interferon-α decreased activin-A and increased follistatin significantly in serum and liver of ‘PEG only’ and ‘PEG & RBV’ groups compared with the ‘Control’ and ‘RBV only’ groups (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference between the ‘RBV only’ and ‘Control’ groups (P > 0.05) in the concentrations of candidate proteins. A significant positive correlations between serum and liver activin-A (r = 0.727; P = 0.02 × 10−3) and follistatin (r = 0.540; P = 0.01) was also detected.ConclusionPegylated-interferon-α modulates the production of activin-A and follistatin by the liver, which is reflected and can be detected at the serum level. Further studies are needed to explore the role of Peg-IFN-α based therapy on the production of activins and follistatin by the liver and immune cells.

Protective effect of rimonabant, a canabinoid receptor 1 antagonist, on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in a rat model through modulation of the hepatic expression of activin A and follistatin

“…These results were parallel to that of Yndestad et al (2009) who demonstrated that serum levels of activin A and activin A/follistatin mRNA ratio in liver are increased in patients with NAFLD, potentially reflecting increased activin A bioactivity. Follistatin antagonizes the biological actions of activin A and blocks its signaling (Refaat et al 2015).…”

Structural evaluation of the peritubular sheath of rat’s testes after administration of ribavirin: A possible impact on the testicular function

“…This dose is parallel to the maximum dose of the drug recommended for human during treatment of HCV: 12 mg/kg (1200 mg for body weight ⩾ 75 kg). 13 …”