Exosomes from adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells alleviate liver ischaemia reperfusion injury subsequent to hepatectomy in rats by regulating mitochondrial dynamics and biogenesis

Hepatic ischaemia reperfusion injury (HIRI) is a major factor leading to liver dysfunction after liver resection and liver transplantation. Adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSCs) have potential therapeutic effects on HIRI. Exosomes derived from ADSCs (ADSCs-exo) have been widely studied as an alternative of ADSCs therapy. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate the potential protective effect and related mechanism of ADSCs-exo on HIRI subsequent to hepatectomy. Rats were randomly divided into four groups: Sham, I30R+PH, ADSCs and ADSCs-exo group. After 24 h of reperfusion, liver and serum of the rats were immediately collected. ADSCs-exo improved liver function, inhibited oxidative stress and reduced apoptosis of hepatocytes in HIRI subsequent to hepatectomy in rats. ADSCs-exo significantly promoted the recovery of mitochondrial function, markedly increased the content of ATP in the liver tissue, and improved the ultrastructure of mitochondria in hepatocytes. Moreover, ADSCs-exo significantly increased the expression of OPA-1, MFN-1 and MFN-2 proteins related to mitochondrial fusion, while DRP-1 and Fis-1 mRNA and protein expression associated with mitochondrial fission were significantly decreased after the treatment with ADSCs-exo. In addition, ADSCs-exo significantly increased the expression of PGC-1 alpha, NRF-1 and TFAM genes and proteins related to mitochondrial biogenesis. ADSCs-exo improves liver function induced by HIRI subsequent to hepatectomy in rats and maintains mitochondrial homeostasis by inhibiting mitochondrial fission, promoting mitochondrial fusion and promoting mitochondrial biogenesis. Therefore, ADSCs-exo may be considered as a potential promising alternative to ADSCs in the treatment of HIRI subsequent to hepatectomy.