IL-17A, MCP-1, CCR-2, and ABCA1 polymorphisms in children with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines are the game-changers in childhood obesity-associated metabolic disorders (diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases)

Childhood obesity is a chronic inflammatory epidemic that affects children worldwide. Obesity affects approximately 1 in 5 children worldwide. Obesity in children can worsen weight gain and raise the risk of obesity-related comorbidities like diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). It can also negatively impact the quality of life for these children. Obesity disrupts immune system function, influencing cytokine (interleukins) balance and expression levels, adipokines, and innate and adaptive immune cells. The altered expression of immune system mediators, including interleukin-1 (IL-1), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8), interleukin-17 (IL-17), interleukin-18 (IL-18), transforming growth factor (TGF), tumor necrosis factor (TNF), and others, caused inflammation, progression, and the development of pediatric obesity and linked illnesses such as diabetes and NAFLD. Furthermore, anti-inflammatory cytokines, including interleukin-2 (IL-2), have been shown to have anti-diabetes and IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra) anti-diabetic and pro-NAFLFD properties, and interleukin-10 (IL-10) has been shown to have a dual role in managing diabetes and anti-NAFLD. In light of the substantial increase in childhood obesity-associated disorders such as diabetes and NAFLD and the absence of an effective pharmaceutical intervention to inhibit immune modulation factors, it is critical to consider the alteration of immune system components as a preventive and therapeutic approach. Thus, the current review focuses on the most recent information regarding the influence of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines (interleukins) and their molecular mechanisms on pediatric obesity-associated disorders (diabetes and NAFLD). Furthermore, we discussed the current therapeutic clinical trials in childhood obesity-associated diseases, diabetes, and NAFLD.

Exploring the role of genetic variations in NAFLD: implications for disease pathogenesis and precision medicine approaches

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the leading causes of chronic liver diseases, affecting more than one-quarter of people worldwide. Hepatic steatosis can progress to more severe forms of NAFLD, including NASH and cirrhosis. It also may develop secondary diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Genetic and environmental factors regulate NAFLD incidence and progression, making it a complex disease. The contribution of various environmental risk factors, such as type 2 diabetes, obesity, hyperlipidemia, diet, and sedentary lifestyle, to the exacerbation of liver injury is highly understood. Nevertheless, the underlying mechanisms of genetic variations in the NAFLD occurrence or its deterioration still need to be clarified. Hence, understanding the genetic susceptibility to NAFLD is essential for controlling the course of the disease. The current review discusses genetics' role in the pathological pathways of NAFLD, including lipid and glucose metabolism, insulin resistance, cellular stresses, and immune responses. Additionally, it explains the role of the genetic components in the induction and progression of NAFLD in lean individuals. Finally, it highlights the utility of genetic knowledge in precision medicine for the early diagnosis and treatment of NAFLD patients.

Immunotherapy Resumption/Rechallenge in Melanoma Patients after Toxicity: Do We Have Another Chance?

Introduction: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have radically changed the prognosis of several neoplasias, among them metastatic melanoma. In the past decade, some of these new drugs have appeared together with a new toxicity spectrum previously unknown to clinicians, until now. A common situation in daily practice is that a patient experiences toxicity due to this type of drug and we need to resume or rechallenge treatment after resolving the adverse event. Methods: A PubMed literature review was carried out. Results: The published data regarding the resumption or rechallenge of ICI treatment in melanoma patients is scarce and heterogeneous. Depending on the study reviewed, the recurrence incidence of grade 3–4 immune-related adverse events (irAEs) ranged from 18% to 82%. Conclusion: It is possible to resume or rechallenge, but each patient should be evaluated by a multidisciplinary team for close monitoring and assessment of the risk/benefit ratio before initiating treatment.

Screening of co-pathogenic genes of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma

Background

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, its carcinogenic mechanism is still unclear, looking for both diseases’ transcriptome levels, the same changes as we are looking for NAFLD may provide a potential mechanism of action of HCC. Thus, our study aimed to discover the coexisting pathogenic genes of NAFLD and HCC.

Methods

We performed a variance analysis with public data for both diseases. At the same time, weighted gene correlation network analysis (WGCNA) was used to find highly correlated gene modules in both diseases. The darkturquoise gene module was found to be highly correlated with both diseases. Based on the diagnosis related module genes and the differential genes of the two diseases, we constructed diagnostic and prognostic models by logistic regression, univariate Cox regression, and LASSO regression. Public datasets verified the results. Meanwhile, we built a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network based on the model genes and explored the related pathways and immune correlation involved in the two diseases by using Gene Ontology, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes, and gene set enrichment analyses. Immunohistochemistry was used to verify the different expression of ABCC5 and TUBG1 among the normal liver, NAFLD, and HCC tissues. Sodium palmitate/sodium oleate was used to establish high-fat cell models, and Real Time Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR) was used to verify the messenger RNA (mRNA) expression of ABCC5 in lipidization cells.

Results

A total of 26 upregulated genes and 87 downregulated genes were found using limma package identification analysis. According to WGCNA, the darkturquoise gene module was highly correlated with the prognosis of both diseases. The coexisting genes acquired by the two groups were only three central genes, that is, ABCC5, DHODH and TUBG1. The results indicated that the diagnostic and prognostic models constructed by ABCC5 and TUBG1 genes had high accuracy in both diseases. The results of immunohistochemistry showed that ABCC5 and TUBG1 were significantly overexpressed in NAFLD and HCC tissues compared with normal liver tissues. The Oil Red O staining and triglyceride identified the successful construction of HepG2 and LO2 high-fat models using PA/OA. The results of RT-qPCR showed that the lipidization of LO2 and HepG2 increased the mRNA expression of ABCC5.

Conclusions

The gene model constructed by ABCC5 and TUBG1 has high sensibility and veracity in the diagnosis of NAFLD as well as the diagnosis and prognosis of HCC. ABCC5 and TUBG1 may play an important role in the development of NAFLD to HCC. In addition, lipidization could upregulate the mRNA expression of ABCC5 in HCC.

Update on Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease-Associated Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms and Their Involvement in Liver Steatosis, Inflammation, and Fibrosis: A Narrative Review

Genetic factors are involved in the development, progression, and severity of NAFLD. Polymorphisms in genes regulating liver functions may increase liver susceptibility to NAFLD. Therefore, we conducted this literature study to present recent findings on NAFLD-associated polymorphisms from published articles in PubMed from 2016 to 2021. From 69 selected research articles, 20 genes and 34 SNPs were reported to be associated with NAFLD. These mutated genes affect NAFLD by promoting liver steatosis (PNPLA3, MBOAT7, TM2SF6, PTPRD, FNDC5, IL-1B, PPARGC1A, UCP2, TCF7L2, SAMM50, IL-6, AGTR1, and NNMT), inflammation (PNPLA3, TNF-α, AGTR1, IL-17A, IL-1B, PTPRD, and GATAD2A), and fibrosis (IL-1B, PNPLA3, MBOAT7, TCF7L2, GATAD2A, IL-6, NNMT, UCP, AGTR1, and TM2SF6). The identification of these genetic factors helps to better understand the pathogenesis pathways of NAFLD

Mitochondrial Mutations and Genetic Factors Determining NAFLD Risk

NAFLD (non-alcoholic fatty liver disease) is a widespread liver disease that is often linked with other life-threatening ailments (metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis, obesity, and others) and canprogress to more severe forms, such as NASH (non-alcoholic steatohepatitis), cirrhosis, and HCC (hepatocellular carcinoma). In this review, we summarized and analyzed data about single nucleotide polymorphism sites, identified in genes related to NAFLD development and progression. Additionally, the causative role of mitochondrial mutations and mitophagy malfunctions in NAFLD is discussed. The role of mitochondria-related metabolites of the urea cycle as a new non-invasive NAFLD biomarker is discussed. While mitochondria DNA mutations and SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms) canbe used as effective diagnostic markers and target for treatments, age and ethnic specificity should be taken into account.

Interaction Between AGTR1 and PPARγ Gene Polymorphisms on the Risk of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

AIMS

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is an important public health issue worldwide. Several recent studies have reported that peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) and angiotensin II type 1 receptor (AGTR1) variants are associated with NAFLD occurrence, but the results have been inconsistent. The aim of this study was to analyze the interactions between PPARγ and AGTR1 polymorphisms and their associations with NAFLD in Chinese adults.

METHODS

Seven single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the PPARγ gene and 5 SNPs of the AGTR1 gene were selected and genotyped in 1591 unrelated Chinese adults. The SNPAssoc package of R was used to examine the relationships between the selected SNPs and NAFLD.

RESULTS

After adjusting the covariance, the results from the overdominant model showed that participants carrying the T/C genotype of rs2638360 in AGTR1 have a decreased risk of NAFLD compared with those with T/T-C/C genotypes (odds ratio: 0.70, 95% confidence interval: 0.49-1.00). However, our results showed that none of the selected PPARγ variants were significantly associated with the risk of NAFLD after applying a false discovery rate correction. Among the 12 selected SNPs from PPARγ and AGTR1, model-based multifactor dimensionality reduction (MB-MDR) analyses for gene-gene interactions revealed that all the models were significantly associated with the increased risk of NAFLD (p < 0.05) except the 2-, 10-, 11-, and 12-locus models. Further, among the 10 SNPs negatively associated with NAFLD, the four-locus model (rs13431696 and rs3856806 in PPARγ, and rs5182, rs1492100 in ATGR1) and the five-locus model (rs9817428, rs1175543, rs13433696, and rs2920502 in PPARγ, and rs1492100 in ATGR1) were closely related with NAFLD susceptibility (p = 0.019 and p = 0.048, respectively).

CONCLUSION

Our present study suggests that interactions among multiple AGTR1 and PPARγ polymorphisms are associated with the risk of NAFLD in the Chinese population.