Abstract

Adipose tissue inflammation in obesity has a deleterious impact on organs such as the liver, ultimately leading to their dysfunction. We have previously shown that activation of the calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) in pre-adipocytes induces TNF-? and IL-1? expression and secretion; however, it is unknown whether these factors promote hepatocyte alterations, particularly promoting cell senescence and/or mitochondrial dysfunction. We generated conditioned medium (CM) from the pre-adipocyte cell line SW872 treated with either vehicle (CMveh) or the CaSR activator cinacalcet 2 µM (CMcin), in the absence or presence of the CaSR inhibitor calhex 231 10 µM (CMcin+cal). HepG2 cells were cultured with these CM for 120 h and then assessed for cell senescence and mitochondrial dysfunction. CMcin-treated cells showed increased SA-?-GAL staining, which was absent in TNF-?- and IL-1?-depleted CM. Compared to CMveh, CMcin arrested cell cycle, increased IL-1? and CCL2 mRNA, and induced p16 and p53 senescence markers, which was prevented by CMcin+cal. Crucial proteins for mitochondrial function, PGC-1? and OPA1, were decreased with CMcin treatment, concomitant with fragmentation of the mitochondrial network and decreased mitochondrial transmembrane potential. We conclude that pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-? and IL-1? secreted by SW872 cells after CaSR activation promote cell senescence and mitochondrial dysfunction, which is mediated by mitochondrial fragmentation in HepG2 cells and whose effects were reversed with Mdivi-1. This investigation provides new evidence about the deleterious CaSR-induced communication between pre-adipocytes and liver cells, incorporating the mechanisms involved in cellular senescence. © 2023 by the authors.