The presence of interferon affects the progression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

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3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Inflammation and metabolic dysfunction are hallmarks of the progression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), which is the fastest-growing liver disease worldwide. Emerging evidence indicates that innate immune mechanisms are essential drivers of fibrosis development in chronic inflammatory liver diseases, including NAFLD. In this study, 142 NAFLD patients were genotyped for three IFNL4 single-nucleotide variants in order to investigate the genetic relationship between IFNL4 and fibrosis in NAFLD patients. We observed an overrepresentation of the non-functional IFNL4 allele in patients with significant fibrosis (>F2). Next, we investigated the potential protective role of interferon (IFN) in relation to the development of liver fibrosis in an animal model of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). In contradiction to our hypothesis, the results showed an increase in fibrosis in IFN treated animals. Our study clearly indicates that IFN is able to affect the development of liver fibrosis, although our clinical and experimental data are conflicting.

Original languageEnglish
JournalGenes and Immunity
Volume23
Issue5
Pages (from-to)157–165
Number of pages9
ISSN1466-4879
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Aug 2022

Keywords

  • ALPHA
  • ASSOCIATION
  • CLEARANCE
  • DAMAGE
  • FIBROSIS
  • IL28B
  • INFLAMMATION
  • POLYMORPHISMS
  • STEATOHEPATITIS
  • VARIANT
  • Antiviral Agents
  • Disease Progression
  • Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/genetics
  • Animals
  • Interferons/genetics
  • Liver/metabolism
  • Fibrosis
  • Liver Cirrhosis/genetics

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