| Fatty liver, or hepatic steatosis, may occur in a variety of situations in which lipid uptake or synthesis overwhelms the capacity of the liver to oxidate and secrete them, leading to their accumulation. Triglyceride is the main lipid found in most cases of fatty livers. Chitin, a kind of linear macromolecular aminopolysaccharide prepared from the exoskeletons of crabs and shrimps, has many pharmacological effects. Previous studies have indicated that chitosan, the partly deacetylated derivative of chitin, can prevent the experimental hypercholesterolemia of rat. In addition, traditional Chinese medicines such as Polygonum multifiorum Thumb.,Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge., and Achyranthes bidentata BL. have satisfactoiy effect on treating fatty liver. Our previous study identified that cbitosan and traditional Chinese medicines including Polygonum multiflorum Thumb.,Salvia miltionhiza Bge. and Achyranthes bidentata BL.(drug 1) had a remarkable effect on preventing fatty liver, but its effect on treating fatty liver had not been studied yet . It was reported that Cassia obtasifolia L. and Alisma plantago L. had favorable effect on reducing liver lipid accumulation. So Cassia obtasifolia L. and Alisma plantago L. were added to the above-mentioned drug (drug 2) to strengthen its function of inhibiting the lipid deposition in liver. In this study, we investigated the effect and mechanism of drug 1 and drug 2 on rat fatty liver in order to search for a drug treating fatty liver effectively. Male Rats were treated with a low dose of carbon tetrachloride (CC14) and fed a high fat diet to produce fatty liver. Then, the therapeutic groups were treated with drug 1 and drug 2. The concentrations of triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were detected and the mohology changes of hepatocyte were evaluated to assess the therapeutic effect The results demonstrated that the combining use of CCLI and high-fat diet induced the contents of TG, TC in liver to increase significantly. Pathological examinations showed that swelling hepatocytes were filled with lipid droplets in model group while the treated group displayed a slight seeatosis and a lower TG, TC contents compared with the model group. Among the treated group the effect of drug 2 was more effective. Moreover, drug 2 also made the ALT activity decrease. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are members of the nuclear steroid hormone receptor superfamily activated by structurally diverse chemicals referred to as peroxisome proliferators such as fatty acids and fibrate lipid-lowering drugs. Studies over the past few years have shown that the a -isoform of the receptors , PPAR a, is a key regulator of lipid homeostasis. It is established that tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and free fatty acids (FFAs) play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of fatty liver. Studies recently identified that the mRNA for PPAR a was significantly reduced by TNF a treatment. In addition, the level of PPAR a protein was also decreased after TNF a treatment. This effect may have important implications in perturbation of the lipid metabolism induced by TNTF a. Studies also found that deletion of PPAR a gene leads to a remarkable decrease in FFAs uptake. Consequently, we hypothesize that PPAR a involves in the pathogenesis of fatty liver. To explore the molecular mechanism of chitosan and traditional Chinese medicines in treating fatty liver, hepatocyte PPAR a expression was analyzed and the concentrations...
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