Association of lithocholic acid with skeletal muscle hypertrophy through TGR5-IGF-1 and skeletal muscle mass in chronic liver disease rats and humans

[Background & aims] Hepatic sarcopenia is one of many complications associated with chronic liver disease (CLD) and has a high mortality rate, however, the liver-muscle axis is not fully understood. Therefore, few effective treatments exist for hepatic sarcopenia, the best of which being branched-amino acid (BCAA) supplementation to help increase muscle mass. Our aim was to investigate the molecular mechanism(s) of hepatic sarcopenia focused on bile acid (BA) composition. [Methods] Gastrocnemius muscle phenotype and serum BA levels were assessed in CLD rats treated with BCAA. Mouse skeletal muscle cells (C2C12) were incubated with lithocholic acid (LCA), G-protein-coupled receptor 5 (TGR5) agonist or TGR5 antagonist to assess skeletal muscle hypertrophy. The correlation between serum BA levels and psoas muscle area index (PMI) was examined in 73 CLD patients. [Results] Gastrocnemius muscle weight significantly increased in CLD rats treated with BCAA via suppression of protein degradation pathways, coupled with a significant increase in serum LCA levels. LCA treated C2C12 hypertrophy occurred in a concentration-dependent manner linked with TGR5-Akt pathways based upon inhibition results via a TGR5 antagonist. In human CLD, serum LCA levels were the sole factor positively correlated with PMI and were significantly decreased in both the low muscle mass group and the deceased group. Serum LCA levels were also shown to predict patient survival. [Conclusion] Our results indicate LCA-mediated skeletal muscle hypertrophy via activation of TGR5-IGF1-Akt signaling pathways. In addition, serum LCA levels were associated with skeletal muscle mass in cirrhotic rats, as well as CLD patients, and predicted overall patient survival. [Funding] This research was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number 22K08011 and 21H02892, and AMED under Grant Number JP21fk0210090 and JP22fk0210115.