Naltrexone, an opioid receptor antagonist, attenuates liver fibrosis in bile duct ligated rats
Ebrahimkhani MR, Kiani S, Oakley F, Kendall T, Shariftabrizi A, Tavangar SM, Moezi L, Payabvash S, Karoon A, Hoseininik H, Mann DA, Moore KP, Mani AR, Dehpour AR. Naltrexone, an opioid receptor antagonist, attenuates liver fibrosis in bile duct ligated rats. Gut 2006, 55: 1606. PMID: 16543289, PMCID: PMC1860108, DOI: 10.1136/gut.2005.076778.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsHepatic stellate cellsProcollagen I expressionHepatic fibrosisBile ductSelective delta-opioid receptor agonistI expressionDelta-opioid receptor agonistAlpha-smooth muscle actinCultured hepatic stellate cellsOpioid receptor antagonistHepatic hydroxyproline levelsEffects of naltrexoneOpioid receptor agonistsHepatic GSH/GSSG ratioReverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reactionTIMP-1 expressionRat hepatic stellate cellsMMP-2 activityTranscriptase-polymerase chain reactionSmooth muscle actinMatrix metalloproteinase-2GSH/GSSG ratioDelta1 receptorsActivated Rat Hepatic Stellate CellsBiliary cirrhosis