Homocysteine-induced endoplasmic reticulum stress causes dysregulation of the cholesterol and triglyceride biosynthetic pathways

Hepatic steatosis is common in patients having severe hyperhomocysteinemia due to deficiency for cystathionine beta-synthase. However, the mechanism by which homocysteine promotes the development and progression of hepatic steatosis is unknown. We report here that homocysteine-induced endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress activates both the unfolded protein response and the sterol regulatory element-binding proteins (SREBPs) in cultured human …