Protective effects of chlorogenic acid on hepatic injury in piglets challenged with lipopolysaccharide: a preliminary study.

The liver of early weaned piglets is one of the most vulnerable organs to immunological stress. This study investigated the protective effects of chlorogenic acid (CGA) on the liver of weaned piglets subjected to immunological stress induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The weaned piglets were fed with 1 g CGA/kg diet for 21 days prior to an i.p. injection of 100 µg LPS/kg body weight administration. The results showed that the LPS increased serum alanine aminotransferase activity and liver caspase 3 mRNA expression, which were reversed by CGA supplementation. CGA normalized hepatic interleukin (IL) 18 and IL1β at both the protein expression and mRNA abundance, myeloperoxidase activity and p65 mRNA expression in LPS-administrated piglets. Dietary CGA supplementation increased hepatic ATP, complex III and complex I contents in the LPS-challenged piglets. The upregulated hepatic optineurin and BCL2 interacting protein 3 like mRNA levels in the LPS-challenged piglets were normalized to control values when supplementing CGA. These data represent preliminary evidence that CGA attenuates hepatic injury, inflammation, and mitochondrial dysfunction in piglets challenged with LPS, indicating CGA could be a potential natural agent for alleviating liver injury and immunological stress in weaned piglets.