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ObjectiveTo investigate the protective effect of quercetin on cadmium-mediated lipid metabolism disorder in livers of mice.MethodsC57BL/6J mice were divided into four groups: a control group, a quercetin-treated group (quercetin by intragastrical administration), a cadmium-treated group (cadmium chloride by intragastrical administration), and a cadmium plus quercetin co-treated group (cadmium chloride plus quercetin by intragastrical administration). After the administration, mice weight was measured; the activities of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in serum, and the contents of total cholesterol (TC) and triglyceride (TG) in both serum and liver were determined; the pathological changes in liver tissues and liver droplets were observed by HE and Oil Red O staining; the expression levels of proteins related to lipogenesis, fatty acid synthase (FAS), and related to lipolysis, lipoprotein lipase (LPL), in liver were detected by Western blotting.ResultsCompared with the control group, the mice treated with cadmium showed that the weight was significantly decreased (P<0.01), the ALT and AST activities were remarkedly increased in serum (P<0.01), the pathological changes of liver injury were seen obviously, the TC and TG contents were remarkedly elevated in both serum and liver (P<0.01), lipid droplets were greatly accumulated (P<0.01), the FAS expression in liver was up-regulated (P<0.01), while the LPL expression was down-regulated (P<0.01). Quercetin intervention significantly alleviated the abnormal changes of the above indicators.ConclusionQuercetin can protect mice from cadmium-induced liver injury by regulating lipid metabolism disorder in liver.