Xu J, Qian Y, Wang JM, Wu XL, Zheng YY. Levodopa: A novel therapeutic prospect for liver disease. World J Hepatol 2026; 18(2): 115563 [DOI: 10.4254/wjh.v18.i2.115563]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Yi-Yuan Zheng, Laboratory Center, Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai Municipal Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 274 Zhijiang Middle Road, Shanghai 200071, China. iceroser@126.com
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Letter to the Editor
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Hepatol. Feb 27, 2026; 18(2): 115563 Published online Feb 27, 2026. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v18.i2.115563
Levodopa: A novel therapeutic prospect for liver disease
Jun Xu, Ying Qian, Jun-Min Wang, Xing-Li Wu, Yi-Yuan Zheng
Jun Xu, Ying Qian, Department of Acupuncture, Shanghai Municipal Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai 200071, China
Jun-Min Wang, Xing-Li Wu, Yi-Yuan Zheng, Laboratory Center, Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai Municipal Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai 200071, China
Co-first authors: Jun Xu and Ying Qian.
Author contributions: Zheng YY conceived this work, Xu J, Qian Y, Wang JM, Wu XL performed the investigation and wrote the manuscript; and all authors thoroughly reviewed and endorsed the final manuscript.
Supported by Shanghai Municipal Health Commission, No. 20234Y0142.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors declare that they have no conflict of interest to disclose.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Yi-Yuan Zheng, Laboratory Center, Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai Municipal Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 274 Zhijiang Middle Road, Shanghai 200071, China. iceroser@126.com
Received: October 20, 2025 Revised: November 5, 2025 Accepted: December 24, 2025 Published online: February 27, 2026 Processing time: 115 Days and 19.5 Hours
Abstract
In this article, we discuss the recently published study by Wang et al, which investigated the therapeutic potential of levodopa, a well-known drug used to treat Parkinson’s disease, for the treatment of liver diseases. The study revealed that levodopa, a dopamine precursor, exerts therapeutic effects by modulating dopamine receptor D1 signaling and activating Hippo/Yes-associated protein 1 pathway, which plays an important role in liver fibrosis. Furthermore, given that dysregulation of the brain-liver axis, including the dopaminergic reward circuit, has been implicated in the progression of liver diseases, particularly those exacerbated by stress, the purpose of this article is to make a further investigation on the potential of levodopa in regulating metabolic dysfunction and addressing maladaptive eating behaviors. Considering the important role of dopamine in regulating lipid metabolism, inflammation, and fibrosis in the liver, levodopa may present as a promising therapeutic candidate for chronic liver diseases characterized by altered dopamine sensitivity.
Core Tip: This article discusses the potential of levodopa as a novel therapeutic prospect for liver diseases, particularly liver fibrosis and metabolic liver disease. Levodopa, which is traditionally used in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease, may influence liver fibrosis through the modulation of dopamine receptor D1 signaling and the activation of Hippo/Yes-associated protein 1 pathway. In addition, its potential impact on eating behavior and metabolic regulation may propose it a broader application for patients with stress-exacerbated liver disease.
