Purpose: To evaluate the hepatic metabolic alterations in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) by using H-MRS (proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy) with long echo time and to test the reproducibility of human study in an animal model. Liver biopsy is the gold standard for diagnosing NAFLD but with practical constraints. H-MRS allows in vivo assessment of hepatocellular metabolism and has shown potential for biochemical differentiation in diffuse liver disease.

Materials And Methods: In all, 32 subjects (11 patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis [NASH], 15 with simple steatosis [SS], and six healthy controls) were studied. For test reproducibility, 36 C57BL/6 mice, including 10 mice with streptozotocin-induced NASH, 15 with SS, and 11 high-fat diet controls, were studied. H-MRS measurements at 3T and 4.7T MRI were performed on a localized voxel of the liver using PRESS sequence. Hepatic alanine (Ala), lactate+triglyceride (Lac+TG), and TG levels were compared between NASH, SS, and control groups using analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests. Diagnostic accuracy was determined by calculating the area under the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve. The associations between metabolite levels and pathologic grades or NAFLD activity scores (NAS) were assessed using Pearson's correlation.

Results: NASH patients had higher levels of Ala (P < 0.001), Lac+TG (P < 0.001), and TG (P < 0.05) than SS patients or controls. The AUROC curve to distinguish NASH from SS was 1.00 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.00-1.00) for Ala and 0.782 (95% CI 0.61-0.96) for Lac+TG. Ala and Lac+TG concentrations were positively correlated with steatosis grade (Ala Pearson's r = 0.723; Lac+TG r = 0.446), lobular inflammation (Ala r = 0.513), and NAS (Ala r = 0.743; Lac+TG r = 0.474).

Conclusion: H-MRS is potentially useful for noninvasive diagnosis of NASH and simple steatosis by hepatic metabolite quantification.

Level Of Evidence: 2 Technical Efficacy: Stage 2 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2017;46:1298-1310.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jmri.25673DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

simple steatosis
12
hepatic alanine
8
nonalcoholic steatohepatitis
8
long echo
8
echo time
8
test reproducibility
8
controls studied
8
ala
7
lac+tg
6
nash
5

Similar Publications

Background: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) encompasses a range of histological findings from the generally benign simple steatosis to steatohepatitis (MASH) which can progress to fibrosis and cirrhosis. Several factors, including the microbiome, may contribute to disease progression.

Results: Here, we demonstrate links between the presence and abundance of specific bacteria in the adipose and liver tissues, inflammatory genes, immune cell responses, and disease severity.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Association between triglyceride-glucose (TyG) related indices and cardiovascular diseases and mortality among individuals with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: a cohort study of UK Biobank.

Cardiovasc Diabetol

January 2025

Medical Big Data Center, Department of General Medicine, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, No. 26 Daoqian Street, Suzhou, 215001, Jiangsu, China.

Background: Triglyceride-glucose (TyG) related indices, which serve as simple markers for insulin resistance, have been closely linked to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), cardiovascular disease (CVD), and mortality. However, the prognostic utility of TyG-related indices in predicting the risk of CVD and mortality among patients with MASLD remains unclear.

Methods: Data of 97,331 MASLD patients, with a median age of 58.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Microenvironment-induced programmable nanotherapeutics restore mitochondrial dysfunction for the amelioration of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Acta Biomater

January 2025

Key Laboratory of Endocrine Glucose & Lipids Metabolism and Brain Aging, Ministry of Education; Department of Endocrinology, Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong, 250021, China; Shandong Key Laboratory of Endocrinology and Lipid Metabolism, Jinan, Shandong, 250021, China; Shandong Engineering Laboratory of Prevention and Control for Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, Jinan, Shandong, 250021, China. Electronic address:

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a metabolic liver disorder with severe complications. Mitochondrial dysfunction due to over-opening of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) in liver cells plays a central role in the development and progression of NAFLD. Restoring mitochondrial function is a promising strategy for NAFLD therapy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Celastrol ameliorates fibrosis in Western diet/tetrachloromethane-induced nonalcoholic steatohepatitis by suppressing Notch/osteopontin signaling.

Phytomedicine

January 2025

Department of Gastroenterology, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310003, China. Electronic address:

Background: Celastrol was recently identified as a potential treatment for obesity and hepatic steatosis. However, whether Celastrol effectively suppresses the nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) stage remains unknown. This study aimed to evaluate the role of Celastrol in the progression from simple steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and fibrosis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Hepatobiliary manifestations of inflammatory bowel disease in Saudi Arabia: A retrospective analysis.

Saudi Med J

January 2025

From the Department of Surgery (Aljiffry, Dahal, Baeisa, Alzahrani, Saleem, Alshahrany), from the Department of Medicine (Hijji, Alsahafi, Alghamdi, Mosli), from the Faculty of Medicine (Aljiffry, Daha, Baeisa, Alzahrani, Alshahrany, Hijji, Alsahafi, Saleem, Alghamdi, Mosli), King Abdulaziz University, from the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Research Group (Alsahafi, Mosli), and from the Gastrointestinal Oncology Unit (Saleem, Alghamdi), King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Objectives: To evaluate the features and frequency of hepatobiliary diseases in individuals with Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Methods: This retrospective study included all IBD patients at King Abdulaziz University Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The primary focus was on the prevalence of hepatobiliary diseases, such as primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), autoimmune hepatitis (AIH), and others.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!