Rapamycin-induced fatty liver in mice is attenuated by chloroquine co-treatment in an ERRα-dependent manner

B'chir W, Dufour CR, Andrzejewski S, St-Pierre J, Scholtes C, Giguère V · 2026 · Journal of Endocrinology · Atlas ID BCH2026

What this study shows

Chloroquine co-treatment attenuates rapamycin-induced hepatic steatosis (a known mTORC1-inhibitor side effect) in mice, and this rescue depends on the nuclear receptor ERRα; RNA-seq shows chloroquine reverses rapamycin-driven upregulation of lipid-metabolism genes, with ERRα identified as a top transcriptional regulator of the effect.

Abstract

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Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), previously known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), remains a major health concern world-wide. Hepatic steatosis manifests by the aberrant accumulation of lipids in hepatocytes. We have previously shown that pharmacological inhibition of mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) by rapamycin, a widely utilized potent immunosuppressant, induces MASLD under normal conditions.

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At a glance

Evidence type	A Animal model Marked A because it is an animal intervention or observation study measuring an organismal outcome (model: Mouse (rapamycin-induced MASLD model; ERRα-null mice)); the code names the system studied -- animal work can be rigorous and still not be human data.
Study type	4 - Animal Study
Model system	Mouse (rapamycin-induced MASLD model; ERRα-null mice)
Journal	Journal of Endocrinology
Year	2026
Peer reviewed	Yes
Record last updated	2026-10-01
Source	DOI 10.1530/JOE-26-0176 · PMID 42544714

Extracted findings

These fields were extracted from the paper with AI assistance and have not been checked against the source. Read them as a pointer into the paper, not as curated claims; where they disagree with the curated summary above, the curated summary stands.

Intervention	Chloroquine co-treatment with rapamycin
Target	ERRα (Esrra) / mTORC1
Model	Mouse
Effect	Chloroquine co-treatment attenuates rapamycin-induced hepatic steatosis in an ERRα-dependent manner

In the Atlas

Cite this paper

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B'chir, W., Dufour, C. R., Andrzejewski, S., St-Pierre, J., Scholtes, C., & Giguère, V. (2026). Rapamycin-induced fatty liver in mice is attenuated by chloroquine co-treatment in an ERRα-dependent manner. Journal of Endocrinology. https://doi.org/10.1530/JOE-26-0176

@article{BCH2026,
  author       = {B'chir, W. and Dufour, C. R. and Andrzejewski, S. and St-Pierre, J. and Scholtes, C. and Giguère, V.},
  title        = {{Rapamycin-induced fatty liver in mice is attenuated by chloroquine co-treatment in an ERRα-dependent manner}},
  journal      = {Journal of Endocrinology},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {10.1530/JOE-26-0176},
  note         = {PMID: 42544714},
}

Cite this Atlas record

The record is the Atlas's own work — the evidence label, the extracted findings and the links. It is cited as part of the dataset, not as the paper.

Barton, O. (2026). Oliver's mTOR Atlas (record BCH2026) [Data set]. https://mtor-atlas.org/study/BCH2026/ · Dataset DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22059963

@misc{atlas_BCH2026,
  author       = {Barton, Oliver},
  title        = {{Oliver's mTOR Atlas}, record BCH2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://mtor-atlas.org/study/BCH2026/},
  doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.22059963}
}

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