Dendrobium officinale polysaccharide prevents liver injury via the regulation of Keap1/Nrf2 pathway and lipid metabolism in acute alcoholic liver injury mice

Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) has emerged as a critical global health concern. Dendrobium officinale polysaccharide (DOP) shows therapeutic potential against ALD. However, despite its promising effects, the protective mechanism of DOP on the ALD is unclear. To investigate the protective mechanisms of DOP, we successfully established an ethanol-induced liver injury model in mice and treated ALD mice with DOP. The results demonstrate that DOP treatment significantly reduced hepatic TG, TC, AST, ALT and MDA levels, while enhancing antioxidant capacity through elevated SOD, GST and GPx, reduced GSH and CAT activities. Mechanistically, DOP activates the KEAP1-Nrf2 signalling pathway, reduces the expression of Keap1, and simultaneously upregulates the expression of Nrf2 and its downstream target NQO1. Furthermore, DOP restored lipid homeostasis in ALD mice. In summary, these findings provide strong scientific evidence for the therapeutic potential of DOP in the treatment of ALD and establish a foundation for developing DOP based natural hepatoprotective agents.