Effects of Fish Oil on Alcoholic Liver Disease in Rats Based on Pathological Mechanisms

According to the clinical research, EPA level was significantly decreased in erythrocytes of alcoholic liver disease (ALD) patients. It was also reported that alcoholic fatty liver could be prevented by regulating the percentage of EPA and DHA in diet. Therefore, the purpose of this four-year study is to investigate the effects of fish oil on ALD in rats through pathological mechanisms. Male Wistar rats will be fed an ethanol-containing liquid diet and part of the olive oil in the liquid diet was replaced by fish oil. In the first year, we will investigate the effects of fish oil on the antioxidative status in ALD rats, including liver function, antioxidant status, biomarkers of oxidative stress and histological features of liver. In the second year, we will investigate the effects of fish oil on the risk factors of cardiovascular disease in ALD rats, including liver function, lipid profiles, vascular cell adhesion molecule, and histological features of aorta. In the third year, we will investigate the effects of fish oil on the immune and inflammatory response in ALD rats, including liver function, inflammatory responses and cytokine contents, leukocyte subpopulation distribution, and in vitro cytokine assay. In the fourth year, we will investigate the effects of fish oil on intestinal health in ALD rats, including liver function, fecal bacteria analysis, the endotoxin levels of intestine and plasma, intestinal permeability, and histological features of intestine. We expect that partial replacement of olive oil with fish oil in the liquid diet can improve ALD in rats by reducing oxidative stress, inhibiting lipid metabolism anomalies, improving immune function and regulating intestinal permeability and intestinal microflora.