Hesperitin derivative-11 suppress hepatic stellate cell activation and proliferation by targeting PTEN/AKT pathway

Hesperitin derivative (HD-11) is a monomeric compound derived from Hesperidin, which is a naturally occurring flavanone glycoside that exerts extensive clinical effects such as anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant and anti-angiogenic. However, the role and fundamental mechanism of HD-11 in hepatic fibrosis are still unrevealed. In this study, HD-11 not only alleviates ECM deposition in rats with liver fibrosis, but also reduces the expression of α-SMA and col1a1 in TGF-β1-induced HSC-T6 cells. Moreover, it was demonstrated that HD-11 significantly promoted the expression of PTEN in vivo and in vitro. In order to evaluate the involvement of HD-11 in TGF-β1-induced HSC-T6 activation, a specific blocking agent of PTEN (bpv) and PTEN small interfering (si)-RNA-mediated silencing were used. Interestingly, HD-11 treatment couldn’t inhibit α-SMA and col1a1 expression on the basis of PTEN knockdown. On the contrary, over-expression of PTEN had an opposite effect on the expression of α-SMA and col1a1 in TGF-β1-induced HSC-T6 cells after treatment of HD-11. In addition, HD-11 remarkably inhibited the expression of p-AKT in vivo and in vitro. Taken together, all the above results indicate that HD-11 may play the part of an effective modulator of PTEN/AKT signaling pathway.