[Animal modeling] - Preliminary study on rat liver fibrosis model induced by high fat and high iron

  Objective: To verify whether iron can accelerate the process of liver fibrosis in rats.

  Methods: Rats were divided into control group, high fat group, high iron group, high fat and high iron group, and high fat and iron removal group, 24 rats in each group. The rats in the high iron group and the high fat and high iron group were intramuscularly injected with 50 mg/kg of iron dextran every other day while taking the normal diet and the high fat and high iron diet freely; The rats in the high-fat iron removal group were injected with 30 mg/kg of deferoxamine mesylate intravenously one month before death, three times a week; At the 4th, 5th and 6th month after intervention, 8 rats were selected to detect hyaluronic acid (HA), collagen type IV (COL-IV), laminin (LN), and procollagen III (PC III); The pathological changes of liver were observed by Masson staining.

  Results: The HA level of the high fat and high iron group was higher than that of the control group and the high fat group at the fifth month of intervention; In the sixth month, the levels of COL-IV and LN in the high-fat and high iron group were higher than those in the high-fat group. In the sixth month of intervention, the level of serum PC Ⅲ in the high-fat and high iron group was 1.63 times higher than that in the high-fat feed group. At the 6th month, the liver samples from the high-fat and high iron group showed significant collagen deposition by Massom staining, but no collagen deposition was found in other groups.

  Conclusion: Iron can accelerate the process of liver fibrosis induced by hyperlipidemia in rats.