The hepatoprotective effects of squid gonad phospholipids on fatty liver disease in zebrafish

Abstract Marine food processing by-products are a valuable source of marine phospholipids with different bioactivities. In a previous study, a method for the extraction of squid phospholipids (SPL) from female squid (Ommastrephes bartrami) gonads was developed. The purpose of this study was to investigate the protective effects of SPL on alcoholic and non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases. The Tg (L-FABP:EGFP) transgenic zebrafish line that expressed increased green fluorescent protein in the liver was used to measure liver injury using phenotype analysis. Lipids accumulation in the liver was observed using oil red O staining. Real-time PCR was done to measure gene expression. The results showed that SPL decreased lipids accumulation, restored liver phenotype, relieved loose cell-to-cell contact, and decreased large vacuoles in the liver. The hepatoprotective mechanism was associated with increased lipids uptake, transport, and metabolism.