An extract of shiitake, a mushroom, may slow the progression of liver fibrosis, by stopping the activation of stellate cells that initiate the buildup of scar tissue in the liver.
- A shiitake mushroom extract could slow the progression of liver fibrosis.
- Liver fibrosis is an abnormal buildup of scar tissue in the liver.
- Liver fibrosis can progress to cirrhosis of the liver, a serious and potentially fatal disease which affects between 200,000 and 500,000 people each year in France.
Liver fibrosis does not cause symptoms, but it can progress to cirrhosis of the liver, a serious and potentially fatal disease, depending on the MSD Manual. At the origin of fibrosis, the perivascular hepatic stellate cells which initiate it.
Mushroom extract, a new treatment option
Fibrosis is an abnormal buildup of scar tissue in the liver, which occurs as the organ tries to repair and replace damaged cells. Currently, “no available medication blocks scar tissue formation safely and effectively, can be read in the MSD Manual. However, other drugs that could reduce fibrosis are currently being studied.”
New work, published in the journal American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology, offer a new avenue for treating fibrosis. Researchers from the Osaka Metropolitan University School of Medicinein Japan, discovered that a shiitake mushroom extract could slow the progression of liver fibrosis, by stopping the activation of stellate cells.
During their work, the scientists gave the AHCC (Active Hexose Correlated Compound), an extract of shiitake mushroom, to mice. Result: they discovered that this product could inhibit the activation of hepatic stellate cells.
Limit alcohol consumption to prevent liver cirrhosis
“We wish to conduct clinical trials to confirm the effectiveness of AHCC in patients with liver fibrosis in order to build more reliable scientific evidence”, says Dr Hayato Urushima, one of the authors, in a press release.
Liver cirrhosis affects between 200,000 and 500,000 people each year in France, according to the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm). L’Health Insurance estimates that this pathology causes around 16,000 deaths per year.
In France, the majority of cases – between 50 and 75% – are due to alcohol abuse. To prevent this disease and many others, Public health France recommends consuming no more than ten standard glasses of alcohol per week, no more than two per day and having drinking-free days.
