0000000000344138
AUTHOR
Anna Gortat
Autophagy as a rescue mechanism in efavirenz-induced mitochondrial dysfunction: a lesson from hepatic cells.
Efavirenz (EFV) is the most widely used non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor applied in highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), the combined pharmacological treatment of the human immunodeficiency virus infection. Its use has been associated with the development of several adverse events including hepatotoxicity. The molecular pathogenesis of this effect is poorly understood but recent reports have highlighted features of mitochondrial dysfunction in hepatic cells exposed to clinically relevant concentrations of EFV. In this study, we investigated the activation of autophagy and, in particular, mitophagy, in human hepatic cells exposed to EFV. We detected the presence of alt…
Compromising mitochondrial function with the antiretroviral drug efavirenz induces cell survival-promoting autophagy
Hepatotoxicity is a very common side effect associated with the pharmacological treatment of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and its pathogenesis is poorly understood. Efavirenz (EFV) is the most widely used nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor administered for the control of HIV and some of its toxic effects in hepatic cells have been recently shown to display features of mitochondrial dysfunction. Here we studied the activation of autophagy and, in particular, mitophagy, the main mitochondrial turnover mechanism, in human hepatic cells treated with clinically relevant concentrations of this drug. EFV-treated cells had altered mitochondria, characterized by a relative…