Differential Recruitment of Monocyte-derived Macrophages in Control and Stellate Cell-depleted Mice During Recurrent Carbon Tetrachloride-induced Acute Liver Injury

Liver depleted of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) is resistant to ischemia/reperfusion-, concanavalin A-, and acetaminophen-induced acute injury. Whether HSCs regulate carbon tetrachloride (CCl )-induced acute liver injury is not known. CCl treatment damages pericentral hepatocytes that express CCl -metabolizing Cyp2E1 and activates HSCs. We investigated whether HSC-depletion in mice transgenic for thymidine kinase under the glial fibrillary acidic protein promoter (GFAP-TK-Tg) confers resistance to injury and inflammation due to CCl rechallenge. GFAP-TK-Tg or wild type (WT) mice were administered 0.16 ml/kg CCl (3× at 3 days intervals), then 40 μg/g/day ganciclovir for 10 days. The treatment depletes ~70%-75% HSCs from GFAP-TK-Tg but not WT mice while the liver recovers from earlier CCl -induced injury. Mice were then administered CCl , and liver injury and inflammation were determined at 24 h. HSC-depleted and HSC-sufficient mice showed similar CCl -induced hepatocyte necrosis and oxidative stress. However, increase in F4/80 macrophages, but not CD68 cells, was greater in CCl rechallenged HSC-depleted compared to HSC-sufficient mice. Expression of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), CCL2, and CXCL1 increased similarly, whereas increase in interleukin-6 (IL6), IL1β, and IL10 expression was higher in CCl rechallenged HSC-depleted compared to HSC-sufficient mice. CCl rechallenge of HSC-sufficient mice rapidly activated HSCs causing significant fibrosis with increased expression of Col1a1, transforming growth factor β1 (TGFβ1), tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases 1 (TIMP1); increase in TIPM1 was much lower and metalloproteinases 13 (MMP13) greater in CCl rechallenged HSC-depleted mice. Interestingly, hepatic recruitment of both profibrogenic (Ly6C ) and antifibrogenic restorative (Ly6C ) macrophages, and neutrophils was significantly greater in CCl rechallenged HSC-depleted mice. These data suggest that CCl directly damages hepatocytes but HSCs regulate inflammation. Rapid fibrogenesis in CCl rechallenged HSC-sufficient mice recovered from earlier injury indicates that even transiently activated HSCs that had reverted to the quiescent phenotype remain primed to become reactivated.