Cyclophilin D deficiency protects against acetaminophen-induced oxidant stress and liver injury

Acetaminophen (APAP) hepatotoxicity is the main cause of acute liver failure in humans. Although mitochondrial oxidant stress and induction of the mitochondrial permeability transition (MPT) have been implicated in APAP-induced hepatotoxicity, the link between these events is unclear. To investigate this, this study evaluated APAP hepatotoxicity in mice deficient of cyclophilin D, a protein component of the MPT. Treatment of wild type mice with APAP resulted in focal centrilobular necrosis, nuclear DNA fragmentation and formation of reactive oxygen (elevated glutathione disulphide levels) and peroxynitrite (nitrotyrosine immunostaining) in the liver. CypD-deficient (Ppif(-/-)) mice were completely protected against APAP-induced liver injury and DNA fragmentation. Oxidant stress and peroxynitrite formation were blunted but not eliminated in CypD-deficient mice. Thus, mitochondrial oxidative stress and induction of the MPT are critical events in APAP hepatotoxicity in vivo and at least part of the APAP-induced oxidant stress and peroxynitrite formation occurs downstream of the MPT.