Metabolic profile reflects stages of fibrosis in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
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Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a leading cause of chronic liver disease worldwide, with fibrosis stage being the main predictor for clinical outcomes. Here, we present the metabolic profile of NAFLD patients with regards to fibrosis progression. We included all consecutive new referrals for NAFLD services between 2011 and 2019. Demographic, anthropometric and clinical features and noninvasive markers of fibrosis were recorded at baseline and at follow-up. Significant and advanced fibrosis were defined using liver stiffness measurement (LSM) as LSM ≥ 8.1 kPa and LSM ≥ 12.1 kPa, respectively. Cirrhosis was diagnosed either histologically or clinically. Fast progressors of fibrosis were defined as those with delta stiffness ≥ 1.03 kPa/year (25% upper quartile of delta stiffness distribution). Targeted and untargeted metabolic profiles were analysed on fasting serum samples using Proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR). A total of 189 patients were included in the study; 111 (58.7%) underwent liver biopsy. Overall, 11.1% patients were diagnosed with cirrhosis, while 23.8% were classified as fast progressors. A combination of metabolites and lipoproteins could identify the fast fibrosis progressors (AUROC 0.788, 95% CI: 0.703–0.874, p < 0.001) and performed better than noninvasive markers. Specific metabolic profiles predict fibrosis progression in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Algorithms combining metabolites and lipids could be integrated in the risk-stratification of these patients.
Date Issued
2023-02
Date Acceptance
2023-02-08
Citation
International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2023, 24 (4), pp.1-12
ISSN
1422-0067
Publisher
MDPI AG
Start Page
1
End Page
12
Journal / Book Title
International Journal of Molecular Sciences
Volume
24
Issue
4
Copyright Statement
© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
License URL
Identifier
https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/24/4/3563
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
3563
Date Publish Online
2023-02-10