Hepatocyte-specific damage in acute toxicity of sodium ferrous citrate: Presentation of a human autopsy case and experimental results in mice

Bibliographic Details
Title: Hepatocyte-specific damage in acute toxicity of sodium ferrous citrate: Presentation of a human autopsy case and experimental results in mice
Authors: Yuji Nishikawa, Yasuhiro Matsuo, Ryosuke Watanabe, Mitsuyuki Miyazato, Mikiko Matsuo, Yasuharu Nagahama, Hiroki Tanaka, Takako Ooshio, Masanori Goto, Yoko Okada, Satoshi Fujita
Source: Toxicology Reports, Vol 10, Iss , Pp 669-679 (2023)
Publisher Information: Elsevier, 2023.
Publication Year: 2023
Collection: LCC:Toxicology. Poisons
Subject Terms: Iron poisoning, Oxidative stress, Cell death, Hepatocytes, Bile ducts, Toxicology. Poisons, RA1190-1270
More Details: Acute iron overload is known to exert deleterious effects in the liver, but detailed pathology has yet to be documented. Here, we report pathological findings in an autopsy case of acute iron toxicity and validation of the findings in mouse experiments. In a 39-year-old woman who intentionally ingested a large amount of sodium ferrous citrate (equivalent to 7.5 g of iron), severe disturbance of consciousness and fulminant hepatic failure rapidly developed. Liver failure was refractory to treatment and the patient died on Day 13. Autopsy revealed almost complete loss of hepatocytes, while bile ducts were spared. To examine the detailed pathologic processes induced by excessive iron, mice were orally administered equivalent doses of ferrous citrate. Plasma aminotransferase levels markedly increased after 6 h, which was preceded by increased plasma iron levels. Hepatocytes were selectively damaged, with more prominent damage in the periportal area. Phosphorylated c-Jun was detected in hepatocyte nuclei after 3 h, which was followed by the appearance of γ-H2AX expression. Hepatocyte injury in mice was associated with the expression of Myc and p53 after 12 and 24 h, respectively. Even at lethal doses, the bile ducts were morphologically intact and fully viable. Our findings indicate that acute iron overload induces hepatocyte-specific liver injury, most likely through hydroxyl radical-mediated DNA damage and subsequent stress responses.
Document Type: article
File Description: electronic resource
Language: English
ISSN: 2214-7500
Relation: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214750023000628; https://doaj.org/toc/2214-7500
DOI: 10.1016/j.toxrep.2023.05.010
Access URL: https://doaj.org/article/b31c8dd3aa634e37be6d83999c41c1f1
Accession Number: edsdoj.b31c8dd3aa634e37be6d83999c41c1f1
Database: Directory of Open Access Journals
More Details
ISSN:22147500
DOI:10.1016/j.toxrep.2023.05.010
Published in:Toxicology Reports
Language:English