Inhibitory Effect of Vitamin E Administration on the Progression of Liver Regeneration Induced by Partial Hepatectomy in Rats

We have proposed that controlled peroxidative modifications of membranes could be playing a role in the early steps of liver regeneration. Hence, lipid peroxidation (LP) was modified in vivo by treatment with vitamin E in rats subjected to partial hepatectomy (PH), and its influence on liver regeneration was evaluated. Our results, using several methods to monitor LP, indicate that vitamin E administration promoted a decreased LP rate in liver subcellular membranes. Vitamin E drastically diminished cytosolic LP, shifting earlier increased LP in plasma membranes, and promoted a higher increase of nuclear LP in animals subjected to PH. Pretreatment with vitamin E induced a striking reduction of liver mass recovery and nuclear bromodeoxyuridine labeling (clearly shown at 24 hours after surgery), as well as promoted a decreased expression of cyclin D1 and of the proliferating cell nuclear antigen after PH. These effects seem to lead to a decreased mitotic index at 48 hours after PH. Vitamin E pretreatment also diminished PH-induced hypoglycemia but elevated serum bilirubin level, which was not observed in PH animals without vitamin treatment. In conclusion, an enhanced but controlled LP seems to play a critical role during the early phases of liver regeneration. Decreasing magnitude or time course of the PH-promoted enhanced LP (at early post-PH stages) by in vivo treatment with vitamin E could promote an early termination of preparative cell events, which lead to the replicative phase, during PH-promoted liver proliferation. The latter could have a significant implication in the antitumorigenic effect ascribed to the treatment with vitamin E.