Oral administration of Jinan Red Ginseng and licorice extract mixtures ameliorates nonalcoholic steatohepatitis by modulating lipogenesis

BACKGROUND: Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is one of the main chronic liver diseases. NASH is identified by lipid accumulation, inflammation, and fibrosis. Jinan Red Ginseng (JRG) and licorice have been widely used because of their anti-inflammatory and hepatoprotective effects. Hence, this study assessed JRG and licorice extract mixtures' effects on NASH progression. METHODS: Palmitic acid (PA) and the western diet (WD) plus, high glucose-fructose water were used to induce in vitro and in vivo NASH. Mice were orally administered with JRG-single (JRG-S) and JRG-mixtures (JRG-M; JRG-S + licorice) at 0, 50, 100, 200 or 400 mg/kg/day once a day during the last half-period of diet feeding. RESULTS: JRG-S and JRG-M reduced NASH-related pathologies in WD-fed mice. JRG-S and JRG-M consistently decreased the mRNA level of genes related with inflammation, fibrosis, and lipid metabolism. The treatment of JRG-S and JRG-M also diminished the SREBP-1c protein levels and the p-AMPK/AMPK ratio. The FAS protein levels were decreased by JRG-M treatment both in vivo and in vitro but not JRG-S. CONCLUSION: JRG-M effectively reduced lipogenesis by modulating AMPK downstream signaling. Our findings suggest that this mixture can be used as a prophylactic or therapeutic alternative for the remedy of NASH.