Nuclear HMGB1 protects from non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases through negative regulation of liver X receptor

Dysregulations of lipid metabolism in the liver may trigger steatosis progression leading to potentially severe clinical consequences such as non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases (NAFLD). Molecular mechanisms underlying liver lipogenesis are very complex and fine-tuned by chromatin dynamics and the activity of multiple key transcription factors. Here, we demonstrate that the nuclear factor HMGB1 acts as a strong repressor of liver lipogenesis during metabolic stress in NAFLD. Mice with liver-specific Hmgb1 -deficiency display exacerbated liver steatosis and hepatic insulin resistance when subjected to a high-fat diet or after fasting/refeeding. Global transcriptome and functional analysis revealed that the deletion of Hmgb1 gene enhances LXRα activity resulting in increased lipogenesis. HMGB1 repression is not mediated through nucleosome landscape re-organization but rather via a preferential DNA occupation in region carrying genes regulated by LXRα. Together these findings suggest that hepatocellular HMGB1 protects from liver steatosis development. HMGB1 may constitute a new attractive option to therapeutically target LXRα axis during NAFLD.