Protective role of c-Jun N-terminal kinase 2 in acetaminophen-induced liver injury

Recent studies in mice suggest that stress-activated c-Jun N-terminal protein kinase 2 (JNK2) plays a pathologic role in acetaminophen (APAP)-induced liver injury (AILI), a major cause of acute liver failure (ALF). In contrast, we present evidence that JNK2 can have a protective role against AILI. When male C57BL/6J wild type (WT) and JNK2−/− mice were treated with 300 mg APAP/kg, 90% of JNK2−/− mice died of ALF compared to 20% of WT mice within 48 h. The high susceptibility of JNK2−/− mice to AILI appears to be due in part to deficiencies in hepatocyte proliferation and repair. Therefore, our findings are consistent with JNK2 signaling playing a protective role in AILI and further suggest that the use of JNK inhibitors as a potential treatment for AILI, as has been recommended by other investigators, should be reconsidered.