Journal of hepatology
-
Journal of hepatology · Sep 2014
Hepcidin knockout mice fed with iron-rich diet develop chronic liver injury and liver fibrosis due to lysosomal iron overload.
Hepcidin is the central regulator of iron homeostasis and altered hepcidin signalling results in both hereditary and acquired iron overload. While the association between iron overload and development of end-stage liver disease is well established, the underlying mechanisms are largely unknown. To improve that, we analysed hepcidin knockout (KO) mice as a model of iron overload-associated liver disease. ⋯ Hepcidin KO mice represent a novel model of iron overload-related liver diseases and implicate lysosomal injury as a crucial event in iron toxicity.