Acute fatty liver of pregnancy with hypoglycaemia, diabetes insipidus and pancreatitis, preceded by intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy

A Case Report on Acute Fatty Liver of Pregnancy: A Difficult Differential Diagnosis of Liver Disorder

Acute fatty liver of pregnancy is a rare but potentially dangerous pregnancy condition with significant maternal and fetal fatality rates. The disorder is driven by a complex pathophysiology and clinically manifests as a rapid worsening in health conditions, increasing the rate of mortality and necessitating expert diagnosis and management. The condition progresses from spontaneous resolution to post-operative complications, resulting in negative consequences. We offer a case report of a young primigravida patient diagnosed with acute fatty liver of pregnancy at term. The report describes the clinical course and its effect. The perinatal result, however, could not be improved due to the late diagnosis. Over the last 40 years, death rates have been dramatically lowered because of competence and a multidisciplinary approach, increasing maternal-fetal outcomes. In this scenario, time management is crucial to success.

Acute fatty liver of pregnancy accompanied with disseminated intravascular coagulopathy and encephalopathy: A case report

Acute fatty liver disease of pregnancy (AFLP) is a rare condition associated with other common liver manifestations such as hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelets syndrome (HELLP). We present a 27-year-old pregnant woman who developed hepatic encephalopathy and DIC after being diagnosed with Acute fatty liver disease of pregnancy.

ZO-2 favors Hippo signaling, and its re-expression in the steatotic liver by AMPK restores junctional sealing

ZO-2 is a peripheral tight junction (TJ) protein whose silencing in renal epithelia induces cell hypertrophy. Here, we found that in ZO-2 KD MDCK cells, in compensatory renal hypertrophy triggered in rats by a unilateral nephrectomy and in liver steatosis of obese Zucker (OZ) rats, ZO-2 silencing is accompanied by the diminished activity of LATS, a kinase of the Hippo pathway, and the nuclear concentration of YAP, the final effector of this signaling route. ZO-2 appears to function as a scaffold for the Hippo pathway as it associates to LATS1. ZO-2 silencing in hypertrophic tissue is due to a diminished abundance of ZO-2 mRNA, and the Sp1 transcription factor is critical for ZO-2 transcription in renal cells. Treatment of OZ rats with metformin, an activator of AMPK that blocks JNK activity, augments ZO-2 and claudin-1 expression in the liver, reduces the paracellular permeability of hepatocytes, and serum bile acid content. Our results suggest that ZO-2 silencing is a common feature of hypertrophy, and that ZO-2 is a positive regulator of the Hippo pathway that regulates cell size. Moreover, our observations highlight the importance of AMPK, JNK, and ZO-2 as therapeutic targets for blood-bile barrier dysfunction.

Molecular Pathogenesis of Intrahepatic Cholestasis of Pregnancy

Intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP) is a pregnancy-specific liver disease. The maternal symptoms are characterized by skin pruritus and elevated bile acids, causing several adverse outcomes for fetuses, including an increased risk of preterm birth, meconium-stained amniotic fluid, neonatal depression, respiratory distress syndrome, and stillbirth. Genetic, hormonal, immunological, and environmental factors contribute to the pathogenesis of ICP, and the estrogen-bile acid axis is thought to play a dominant role. The advances in the past 10 years uncover more details of this axis. Moreover, dysregulation of extracellular matrix and oxygen supply, organelle dysfunction, and epigenetic changes are also found to cause ICP, illuminating more potential drug targets for interfering with. Here, we summarize the molecular pathogenesis of ICP with an emphasis on the advancement in the past 10 years, aiming to give an updated full view of this field.

Acute fatty liver of pregnancy: a case report

Background

Acute Fatty Liver of Pregnancy (AFLP) is a rare, catastrophic disease affecting women in the third trimester of pregnancy or in the post-partum period. It is usually a diagnosis of exclusion and requires a strong index of suspicion for a timely diagnosis and prompt intervention.

Case presentation

We report a case of AM, an 18 year patient, in her first pregnancy at 35 weeks gestation who presented with nausea, vomiting and jaundice. She had a vaginal delivery following spontaneous preterm labour. A clinical diagnosis of acute fatty liver of pregnancy was made on the 3rd day post-delivery. The post-delivery course was complicated by a deterioration of clinical symptoms with worsening hepatorenal function and development of encephalopathy. The patient died 3 days after admission and the diagnosis was confirmed on post-mortem and histology.

Conclusion

Delay in the diagnosis is associated with morbid complications with high mortality and this case highlights the importance of a high index of suspicion of the condition in women presenting with jaundice in pregnancy.

Acute fatty liver of pregnancy and concomitant medical conditions: A review of cases at a quaternary obstetric hospital

Acute fatty liver of pregnancy is a rare complication of pregnancy that may result in fulminant hepatic failure. We present a review of all patients presenting to a quaternary obstetric hospital over a 15-year period, with particular regard to biochemical changes, results of gene testing, and pre-existing conditions. Seventeen patients with acute fatty liver of pregnancy were identified. Six patients were documented to have pre-existing gastrointestinal disease; five with inflammatory bowel disease, and one with influenza A hepatitis. Antithrombin III levels were low in this study, consistent with previously published data. There were no recurrences of acute fatty liver of pregnancy in nine subsequent pregnancies to seven mothers. The authors are not aware of any literature addressing pre-existing medical conditions which may predispose to acute fatty liver of pregnancy.

Acute fatty liver of pregnancy in a woman with ulcerative colitis and familial hidradenitis suppurativa

Acute fatty liver of pregnancy is a heterogeneous disorder which may occur in the absence of a detectable gene mutation for the enzyme long-chain L-3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase. Acute fatty liver of pregnancy has been reported to complicate several gastrointestinal disorders including viral hepatitis, chronic active hepatitis and intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy. A case of acute fatty liver of pregnancy in a woman with ulcerative colitis and familial hidradenitis suppurativa without a detectable gene mutation is presented. The potential role of inflammatory cytokines in precipitating acute fatty liver of pregnancy is discussed.

Role of 3-Hydroxy Fatty Acid-Induced Hepatic Lipotoxicity in Acute Fatty Liver of Pregnancy

Acute fatty liver of pregnancy (AFLP), a catastrophic illness for both the mother and the unborn offspring, develops in the last trimester of pregnancy with significant maternal and perinatal mortality. AFLP is also recognized as an obstetric and medical emergency. Maternal AFLP is highly associated with a fetal homozygous mutation (1528G>C) in the gene that encodes for mitochondrial long-chain hydroxy acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (LCHAD). The mutation in LCHAD results in the accumulation of 3-hydroxy fatty acids, such as 3-hydroxy myristic acid, 3-hydroxy palmitic acid and 3-hydroxy dicarboxylic acid in the placenta, which are then shunted to the maternal circulation leading to the development of acute liver injury observed in patients with AFLP. In this review, we will discuss the mechanistic role of increased 3-hydroxy fatty acid in causing lipotoxicity to the liver and in inducing oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction and hepatocyte lipoapoptosis. Further, we also review the role of 3-hydroxy fatty acids in causing placental damage, pancreatic islet β-cell glucolipotoxicity, brain damage, and retinal epithelial cells lipoapoptosis in patients with LCHAD deficiency.

Presumed acute fatty liver of pregnancy following influenza A hepatitis

Acute fatty liver of pregnancy is a rare mitochondrial hepatopathy characterised by microvesicular fatty infiltration, and is believed to be due to impaired fatty acid oxidation. Hepatitis following influenza virus infection is uncommon. Rarely influenza virus infection may be complicated by Reye's syndrome, another hepatic microvesicular fat disease. A case of influenza A hepatitis in third trimester of pregnancy, followed by the evelopment of presumed acute fatty liver of pregnancy is described in this report and a potential mechanism why this may have occurred is discussed.

Immunology of hepatic diseases during pregnancy

The mother's immune system has to adapt to pregnancy accepting the semi-allograft fetus and preventing harmful effects to the developing child. Aberrations in feto-maternal immune adaptation may result in disease of the mother, such as liver injury. Five pregnancy-associated liver disorders have been described so far, however, little is known concerning immune alterations promoting the respective disease. These liver disorders are pre-eclampsia, hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, low platelet count (HELLP), acute fatty liver, hyperemesis gravidarum, and intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy. On the other hand, pre-existing autoimmune liver injury of the mother can be affected by pregnancy. This review intends to summarize current knowledge linking feto-maternal immunology and liver inflammation with a special emphasis on novel potential biomarkers.