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. 2023 Aug 24;2(9):pgad280.
doi: 10.1093/pnasnexus/pgad280. eCollection 2023 Sep.

Mechanism of ozone alleviation of malignant ascites in hepatocellular carcinoma through the inhibition of neutrophil extracellular traps

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Mechanism of ozone alleviation of malignant ascites in hepatocellular carcinoma through the inhibition of neutrophil extracellular traps

Feng Han et al. PNAS Nexus. .

Abstract

Malignant ascites in hepatocellular carcinoma is usually a sign of advanced disease and poor prognosis and is also thought to be associated with chronic inflammation mediated by neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) networks. Although ozone, a strong oxidant, has significant antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects, its effectiveness in treating malignant liver ascites is unclear. We first measured the levels of NETs in the peripheral blood of patients with liver cancer and healthy individuals. Next, we constructed the H22 tumor-bearing mouse model and observed the abdominal girth, body weight, survival rate, and survival time in each group; we marked the proteins associated with NETs in mouse intestinal tissues by immunofluorescence; cf-DNA and cytokines in ascites such as: tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), interleukin 6 (IL-6), matrix metalloprotein 9 (MMP-9), and interferon gamma (IFN-γ) levels in ascites were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The expression levels of phosphorylated adenylate-activated protein kinase (P-AMPK) and scavenger receptor-A (SR-A) were detected by immunocytochemistry in the intestinal tissues of each group of mice. We further examined the expression of P-AMPK and SR-A proteins in ascites deposits by Western blotting. The results show, the plasma levels of NETs were higher in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma than in normal subjects (P < 0.01). Abdominal girth and body weight were significantly reduced in the ozone-treated group compared with the model group, while survival and survival time were dose dependently increased (both P < 0.05). NET-associated guanine histone H3 and myeloperoxidase were abundantly expressed at neutrophil aggregates in the intestinal tissues of the model mice, whereas their expression was significantly reduced in the ozone-treated group. The levels of cf-DNA, IL-6, IFN-γ, MMP-9, VEGF, and TNF-α were dose dependently increased in the ascites of H22 tumor-bearing mice in the ozone-treated group compared with the model group (all P < 0.01), while the expression of P-AMPK and SR-A proteins was increased in the ozone-treated group compared with the model group. Ozone showed significant antiperitoneal fluid production properties in H22 tumor-bearing mice, and ozone reduced peritoneal fluid production by activating AMPK and up-regulating SR-A phagocytosis damage-associated molecular patterns to reduce the production of NETs. This suggests that ozone could be used as a new drug for the treatment of malignant ascites in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Keywords: hepatocellular carcinoma ascites; neutrophil extracellular trap network; ozone.

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Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Comparison of free DNA levels in plasma of patients with liver cancer and normal subjects. The data are shown as mean ± SD (n = 10; (**P < 0.01).
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
The effect of ozone treatment on H22 hepatocellular carcinoma mice. A) Mouse model of H22 malignant ascites. B) Abdominal girth of mice in each group. C) Mean body weight of mice in each group. D) Survival curves of mice in each group. E) Ascites appearance in H22 hepatocellular carcinoma mice. F) Ascites volume in H22 hepatocellular carcinoma mice. Data are expressed as mean ± SD (n = 6; compared with the model group; *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01).
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
Localization and quantitative analysis of NET expression in intestinal tissues of various groups of mice. A) Expression and localization of NETs in each group of mice. B) Percentage of cells co-expressing CitH3 and MPO. The data are presented as the mean ± SD (n = 6; compared with the model group, ***P < 0.001).
Fig. 4.
Fig. 4.
Effect of ozone on NETs and cytokines in the ascites of mice with liver cancer ascites. A) cf-DNA, B) TNF-α, C) IL-6, D) VEGF, E) MMP-9, F) interferon gamma. The data are presented as the mean ± SD (n = 6; compared with the model group; **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001).
Fig. 5.
Fig. 5.
Effect of ozone treatment on p-AMPK and SR-A protein expression. A) Immunocytochemical images of p-AMPK and SR-A in the intestinal tissues of mice in each group. B) Western blot analysis of p-AMPK and SR-A expression. C) Quantitative analysis of relative protein expression in each group. Data are shown as mean ± SD. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001 significantly different from the model group.

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