{
  "abstract": "Background/Objectives: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD, formerly NAFLD) lacks approved specific pharmacological treatments and exhibits complex pathogenesis. Licochalcone A (LA), a flavonoid extracted from Glycyrrhiza glabra, possesses anti-inflammatory and lipid-modulating activities, yet its protective effects and transcriptional regulatory mechanisms against MASLD remain poorly defined. Methods: We established an HFD-induced MASLD mouse model to assess the in-vivo protective effect of LA. Hepatic RNA-sequencing was performed to profile transcription factor (TF) expression and identify differentially expressed transcription factors (DE-TFs). Functional enrichment and protein–protein interaction (PPI) network analysis were conducted to characterize DE-TFs and screen hub TFs. RT-qPCR was used to validate the expression patterns of identified hub TFs. Results: LA administration attenuated hepatic lipid deposition in HFD-fed MASLD mice. In total, 149 DE-TFs were identified, including 95 DE-TFs from the comparison of HFD versus control mice and 122 DE-TFs from LA-treated mice versus HFD mice, with 68 DE-TFs shared between the two comparisons. Functional enrichment indicated that these DE-TFs were associated with RNA polymerase II-dependent transcription, nuclear components, DNA binding, signal transduction, and metabolic-disease-related pathways. Nine hub TFs (Myc, Fos, Runx1, Mef2c, Spi1, Sox9, E2f1, Cebpa, and Pparg) were screened via PPI analysis. Seven hub TFs were up-regulated, while Cebpa and Pparg were down-regulated in MASLD mice; LA intervention partly reversed this dysregulated expression profile, as further verified by RT-qPCR. Conclusions: LA mitigates the development of HFD-provoked MASLD-associated hepatic lesions and is associated with partially restored transcript levels of aberrantly expressed hub TFs in mice. This work provides transcriptome-level resources for understanding LA-mediated hepatoprotection against HFD-induced MASLD development and highlights candidate TF targets relevant to MASLD research.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "School of Medical Technology and Engineering, Henan University of Science and Technology, 263 Kaiyuan Ave, Luoyang 471023, China",
    "College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan University of Science and Technology, 263 Kaiyuan Ave, Luoyang 471023, China"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Shanshan Zhao"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Bohan Lei"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Rongxia Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Shuai Wang"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8kw96yhw0jp6m.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3390/nu18213564",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "8kw96yhw0jp6m",
  "issns": [
    "2072-6643"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/21/3564",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "2713|Liver Disease Diagnosis and Treatment"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7224116474",
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-28",
  "publisher": "MDPI AG",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8kw96yhw0jp6m.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:19:56Z",
      "native_id": "10.3390/nu18213564",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/21/3564"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2713|Liver Disease Diagnosis and Treatment",
      "subfield": "epidemiology-public-health"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Transcriptomic Profiling Identifies Hub Transcription Factors Associated with the Protective Effects of Licochalcone A Against HFD-Induced MASLD",
  "title_text": "Transcriptomic Profiling Identifies Hub Transcription Factors Associated with the Protective Effects of Licochalcone A Against HFD-Induced MASLD",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:19:56Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8kw96yhw0jp6m",
  "venue": "Nutrients",
  "versions": []
}