2. Academic Validation
  3. Exercise-induced adipokine Nrg4 alleviates MASLD by disrupting hepatic cGAS-STING signaling

Exercise-induced adipokine Nrg4 alleviates MASLD by disrupting hepatic cGAS-STING signaling

  • Cell Rep. 2025 Feb 25;44(2):115251. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2025.115251.
Min Chen 1,  Yang Li 1,  Jie-Ying Zhu 1,  Wang-Jing Mu 1,  Hong-Yang Luo 1,  Lin-Jing Yan 1,  Shan Li 1,  Ruo-Ying Li 1,  Meng-Ting Yin 1,  Xin Li 1,  Hu-Min Chen 1,  Liang Guo 2
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 School of Exercise and Health and Collaborative Innovation Center for Sports and Public Health, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai 200438, China; Shanghai Frontiers Science Research Base of Exercise and Metabolic Health, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai 200438, China; Key Laboratory of Exercise and Health Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai 200438, China.
  • 2 School of Exercise and Health and Collaborative Innovation Center for Sports and Public Health, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai 200438, China; Shanghai Frontiers Science Research Base of Exercise and Metabolic Health, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai 200438, China; Key Laboratory of Exercise and Health Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai 200438, China. Electronic address: guoliang@sus.edu.cn.
PMID: 39891907 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2025.115251
Abstract

Exercise is an effective non-pharmacological strategy for ameliorating metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). Neuregulin-4 (Nrg4) is an adipokine with a potential role in metabolic homeostasis. Previous findings have shown that Nrg4 is upregulated by exercise and that Nrg4 reduces hepatic steatosis, but the underlying mechanism is not fully understood. Here, we show that adipose Nrg4 is transactivated by PPARγ in response to exercise in mice. Adeno-associated virus (AAV)-mediated knockdown of adipose Nrg4 as well as hepatocyte-specific knockout of Erbb4 (Nrg4 receptor) impair exercise-mediated alleviation of MASLD in mice. Conversely, AAV-mediated overexpression of adipose Nrg4 mitigates MASLD in mice in synergy with exercise. Mechanistically, Nrg4/Erbb4/Akt signaling promotes cyclic guanosine monophosphate-AMP synthase (cGAS) phosphorylation to blunt its Enzyme activity, thereby inhibiting cGAS-STING pathway-mediated inflammation and steatosis in hepatocytes. Thus, Nrg4 functions as an exercise-induced adipokine that participates in adipose-liver tissue communication to counteract MASLD.

Keywords

AKT; CP: Immunology; CP: Metabolism; Erbb4; MASLD; Nrg4; PPARγ; STING; cGAS; exercise; hepatic steatosis; inflammation.

Figures
Products