Researchers are reporting that a protein may be responsible for lipid metabolism, a process that controls the production and breakdown of lipids, or fat molecules, in cells. PSMD9 could be a promising therapeutic target to reduce non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, a silent disease in which fat builds up in the liver, causing few or no symptoms.
In the study, researchers used lipidomics and proteomics, two large-scale analytical approaches, to identify PSMD9 in 100 genetically distinct mouse strains. Researchers then validated the role of the PSMD9 in lipid metabolism. They treated mice with a therapy that turns off the PSMD9 gene and reduces PSMD9 protein activity. In a separate experiment, mice ate a Western diet, a diet that mirrors a fast-food menu, in conjunction to the therapy to recreate conditions suitable for lipid buildup in the liver. The findings suggest that turning off the PSMD9 gene may be a possible therapeutic strategy to reduce liver toxicity.
The study, funded by NHLBI, appeared in Nature.