As yet, there was no effective pharmacological
therapy approved for
non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (
NAFLD). Here, we aimed to evaluate the therapeutic potential of
puerarin against
NAFLD and explored the underlying mechanisms. C57BL/6J mice were fed with a high-fat high-
sucrose (HFHS) diet with or without
puerarin coadministration intragastrically. The levels of hepatocellular injury, steatosis,
fibrosis, and mitochondrial and metabolism alteration were detected. First,
puerarin ameliorated histopathologic abnormalities due to HFHS. We observed a marked increase in hepatic
lipid content,
inflammation, and
fibrosis level, which were attenuated by
puerarin. Possible mechanisms were related to
puerarin-mediated activation of PI3K/AKT pathway and further improvement in
fatty acid metabolism.
Puerarin restored the NAD+ content and beneficially affected the hepatic mitochondrial function, which attenuated HFHS-induced steatosis and metabolic disturbances. Finally, hepatic PARP-1 was activated due to excessive fat intake.
Puerarin attenuated the PARP-1 expression in HFHS-fed mice, and
PJ34, the
PARP inhibitor, could mimic these protections of
puerarin. However, pharmacological inhibition of PI3K disabled the protection of
puerarin or
PJ34 toward NAD+ refilling and mitochondrial homeostasis. In conclusion, our findings indicated that
puerarin could be a promising and practical therapeutic strategy in
NAFLD through modulating PARP-1/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway and further facilitating mitochondrial function.