Aldehydes alter TGF-β signaling and induce obesity and cancer

Abstract

Obesity and fatty liver diseases—metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH)—affect over one-third of the global population and are exacerbated in individuals with reduced functional aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2), observed in approximately 560 million people. Current treatment to prevent disease progression to cancer remains inadequate, requiring innovative approaches. We observe that Aldh2−/− and Aldh2−/−Sptbn1+/− mice develop phenotypes of human metabolic syndrome (MetS) and MASH with accumulation of endogenous aldehydes such as 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE). Mechanistic studies demonstrate aberrant transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) signaling through 4-HNE modification of the SMAD3 adaptor SPTBN1 (β2-spectrin) to pro-fibrotic and pro-oncogenic phenotypes, which is restored to normal SMAD3 signaling by targeting SPTBN1 with small interfering RNA (siRNA). Significantly, therapeutic inhibition of SPTBN1 blocks MASH and fibrosis in a human model and, additionally, improves glucose handling in Aldh2−/− and Aldh2−/−Sptbn1+/− mice. This study identifies SPTBN1 as a critical regulator of the functional phenotype of toxic aldehyde-induced MASH and a potential therapeutic target.