Losartan-M6PHSA did not affect metalloproteinase type 2 and 9 activity and did not cause apoptosis of activated HSCs. Conclusion: Short-term treatment with HSC-targeted losartan markedly Z-VAD-FMK in vitro reduces advanced liver fibrosis. This approach may provide a novel means to treat chronic liver diseases. (HEPATOLOGY 2010.) Hepatic fibrosis is the consequence of most types of chronic liver diseases.1 There are no effective therapies to treat liver fibrosis

in patients in which the causative agent cannot be removed.2 In experimentally-induced liver fibrosis, several agents reduce progression of the disease.3 Inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) are probably the most promising drugs. There is extensive evidence indicating that the RAS regulates liver fibrogenesis.4 AP24534 RAS components are overexpressed in livers with fibrosis and angiotensin II induces inflammatory and fibrogenic effects in vivo and in activated hepatic stellate cells through AT1 receptors (HSC).5, 6 The

blockade of AT1 receptors reduces the accumulation of activated HSCs and attenuates liver fibrosis in rats7 and AT1 receptor–deficient mice exhibit attenuated response to hepatic inflammation and fibrosis.8 However, the efficacy of AT1 receptor blockers to reverse established fibrosis is unknown. We propose an innovative approach to deliver drugs to activated HSCs, increasing the concentration in the liver at the sites of active fibrogenesis. Moreover, drug delivery can be useful to avoid systemic undesirable effects such as renal dysfunction. The drug delivery system

applied in this study uses mannose 6-phosphate modified human serum albumin (M6PHSA), a carrier that delivers drugs to activated HSCs.9 M6PHSA binds to the mannose-6-phosphate/insulin growth factor type II receptor (M6P/IGII-R), a surface exposed receptor that is de novo expressed in activated HSCs during liver fibrogenesis.10 Prior studies demonstrated rapid and efficient accumulation of drug-M6PHSA conjugates Methisazone in the fibrotic liver.11, 12 To conjugate losartan to M6PHSA, we employed a novel type of platinum linker called ULS (Universal Linkage System), which can bind losartan via a coordinative bond at one of the aromatic nitrogen atoms in the tetrazole group.13–15 Application of this coordinative linker technology has several important advantages, for instance straightforward coupling of drugs, adequate stability of conjugates, and slow-release of the active pharmacon within target cells.11 In the present study, we administered losartan-M6PHSA for a short period of time to rats with advanced fibrosis. We demonstrate that losartan-M6PHSA accumulates exclusively in the fibrotic liver at the sites of activated HSCs. Importantly, treatment with losartan-M6PHSA, but not free losartan given orally, reduced both hepatic inflammation and fibrosis.