Browse
Submit Data
Databases
API
Help

Dataset Information

17 Views

0 Connections

0 Citations

0 Reanalyses

0 Downloads

Omics score: 0

Remodeling of Mitochondrial Plasticity: The Key Switch from NAFLD/NASH to HCC.

ABSTRACT: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary malignancy of the liver and the third-leading cause of cancer-related mortality. Currently, the global burden of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has dramatically overcome both viral and alcohol hepatitis, thus becoming the main cause of HCC incidence. NAFLD pathogenesis is severely influenced by lifestyle and genetic predisposition. Mitochondria are highly dynamic organelles that may adapt in response to environment, genetics and epigenetics in the liver ("mitochondrial plasticity"). Mounting evidence highlights that mitochondrial dysfunction due to loss of mitochondrial flexibility may arise before overt NAFLD, and from the early stages of liver injury. Mitochondrial failure promotes not only hepatocellular damage, but also release signals (mito-DAMPs), which trigger inflammation and fibrosis, generating an adverse microenvironment in which several hepatocytes select anti-apoptotic programs and mutations that may allow survival and proliferation. Furthermore, one of the key events in malignant hepatocytes is represented by the remodeling of glucidic-lipidic metabolism combined with the reprogramming of mitochondrial functions, optimized to deal with energy demand. In sum, this review will discuss how mitochondrial defects may be translated into causative explanations of NAFLD-driven HCC, emphasizing future directions for research and for the development of potential preventive or curative strategies.

SUBMITTER: Longo M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8073183 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Json Xml

Similar Datasets

The Role of Oxidative Stress in NAFLD-NASH-HCC Transition-Focus on NADPH Oxidases.

Project description:A peculiar role for oxidative stress in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and its transition to the inflammatory complication non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), as well as in its threatening evolution to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), is supported by numerous experimental and clinical studies. NADPH oxidases (NOXs) are enzymes producing reactive oxygen species (ROS), whose abundance in liver cells is closely related to inflammation and immune responses. Here, we reviewed recent findings regarding this topic, focusing on the role of NOXs in the different stages of fatty liver disease and describing the current knowledge about their mechanisms of action. We conclude that, although there is a consensus that NOX-produced ROS are toxic in non-neoplastic conditions due to their role in the inflammatory vicious cycle sustaining the transition of NAFLD to NASH, their effect is controversial in the neoplastic transition towards HCC. In this regard, there are indications of a differential effect of NOX isoforms, since NOX1 and NOX2 play a detrimental role, whereas increased NOX4 expression appears to be correlated with better HCC prognosis in some studies. Further studies are needed to fully unravel the mechanisms of action of NOXs and their relationships with the signaling pathways modulating steatosis and liver cancer development.

| S-EPMC8235710 | biostudies-literature

Noninvasive Diagnosis of NAFLD and NASH.

Project description:The aim of this review is to outline emerging biomarkers that can serve as early diagnostic tools to identify patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and, among them, the subgroup of best candidates for clinical trials on emerging compounds. Regarding possible predictors of NAFLD, a number of studies evaluated a combination of serum biomarkers either available in routine practice (or investigational) or proprietary and expensive. So far, magnetic resonance imaging-derived proton density fat fraction (MRI-PDFF) appears to be the most accurate for fatty liver diagnosis. In clinical practice, the main question is how to diagnose NASH early. There are new promising biomarkers that can help in diagnosing early stages of NASH, yet they include variables not routinely tested. In the setting of NASH, most studies confirm that, in spite of several well-known limitations, transient elastography or point shear wave elastography can help in enriching the pool of patients that should be screened for investigational treatments. Newer multiomics biomarkers including those focusing on microbiota can be useful but require methods to be standardized and implemented. To date, one biomarker alone is not able to non- or minimally invasively identify patients with NASH and mild to moderate fibrosis.

| S-EPMC7226476 | biostudies-literature

Evolving Role for Pharmacotherapy in NAFLD/NASH.

Project description:Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a highly prevalent, dynamic disease that occurs across the age spectrum and can lead to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. There are currently no US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved treatments for NAFLD; however, this is a field of active research. This review summarizes emerging pharmacotherapies for the treatment of adult and pediatric NAFLD. Investigated pharmacotherapies predominantly target bile acid signaling, insulin resistance, and lipid handling within the liver. Three drugs have gone on to phase III trials for which results are available. Of those, obeticholic acid is the single agent that demonstrates promise according to the interim analyses of the REGENERATE trial. Obeticholic acid showed reduction of fibrosis in adults with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) taking 25 mg daily for 18 months (n = 931, reduction in fibrosis in 25% vs. 12% placebo, P < 0.01). Ongoing phase III trials include REGENERATE and MAESTRO-NASH, which investigates thyroid hormone receptor-? agonist MGL-3196. Outcomes of promising phase II trials in adults with NASH are also available and those have investigated agents, including the fibroblast growth factor (FGF)19 analogue NGM282, the GLP1 agonist liraglutide, the FGF21 analogue Pegbelfermin, the sodium glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitor Empagliflozin, the ketohexokinase inhibitor PF-06835919, the acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase inhibitor GS-0976, and the chemokine receptor antagonist Cenicriviroc. Completed and ongoing clinical trials emphasize the need for a more nuanced understanding of the phenotypes of subgroups within NAFLD that may respond to an individualized approach to pharmacotherapy.

| S-EPMC7877845 | biostudies-literature

Innate Immunity and Inflammation in NAFLD/NASH.

Project description:Inflammation and hepatocyte injury and death are the hallmarks of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), the progressive form of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), which is a currently burgeoning public health problem. Innate immune activation is a key factor in triggering and amplifying hepatic inflammation in NAFLD/NASH. Thus, identification of the underlying mechanisms by which immune cells in the liver recognize cell damage signals or the presence of pathogens or pathogen-derived factors that activate them is relevant from a therapeutic perspective. In this review, we present new insights into the factors promoting the inflammatory response in NASH including sterile cell death processes resulting from lipotoxicity in hepatocytes as well as into the altered gut-liver axis function, which involves translocation of bacterial products into portal circulation as a result of gut leakiness. We further delineate the key immune cell types involved and how they recognize both damage-associated molecular patterns or pathogen-associated molecular patterns through binding of surface-expressed pattern recognition receptors, which initiate signaling cascades leading to injury amplification. The relevance of modulating these inflammatory signaling pathways as potential novel therapeutic strategies for the treatment of NASH is summarized.

| S-EPMC4948286 | biostudies-literature

NAFLD-Associated HCC: Progress and Opportunities.

Project description:Due to an increase in the obesity-associated metabolic syndrome of epidemic proportions, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is becoming a leading cause of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in western countries. This presents added challenges, as NAFLD-associated HCC tends to present at an advanced stage in older patients with co-morbidities. Their prognosis is generally poor with the benefits of standard therapies less certain. The pathogenesis of NAFLD-associated HCC is multifactorial and not well understood, although the risk of HCC developing undoubtedly increases as NAFLD progresses to steatohepatitis and cirrhosis. Recent advances in our understanding of the drivers of NAFLD and HCC will hopefully lead to the development of clinically relevant biomarkers, tools and strategies to aid the identification of high-risk patients, inform preventive measures, and introduction of better tolerated targeted therapies. Lifestyle modification and chemoprevention with drugs such as anti-platelets, statins and anti-diabetics are being evaluated for HCC prevention. The landmark IMBrave150 study introducing the combination of atezolizumab and bevacizumab has recently transformed the landscape of systemic therapies in HCC, with follow-up analyses and real-world data for patients with NAFLD-associated HCC eagerly anticipated. While responses may vary in ways not yet appreciated, the rate of discovery and progress suggests imminent change and opportunities.

| S-EPMC8041650 | biostudies-literature

Changes in Key Mitochondrial Lipids Accompany Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Oxidative Stress in NAFLD.

Project description:Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a dysmetabolic hepatic damage of increasing severity: simple fat accumulation (steatosis), nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and hepatic fibrosis. Oxidative stress is considered an important factor in producing hepatocyte injury associated with NAFLD progression. Studies also suggest a link between the accumulation of specific hepatic lipid species, mitochondrial dysfunction, and the progression of NAFLD. However, it is unclear whether mitochondrial lipid modifications are involved in NAFLD progression. To gain insight into the relationship between mitochondrial lipids and disease progression through different stages of NAFLD, we performed lipidomic analyses on mouse livers at different stages of western diet-induced NAFLD, with or without hepatic fibrosis. After organelle separation, we studied separately the mitochondrial and the "nonmitochondrial" hepatic lipidomes. We identified 719 lipid species from 16 lipid families. Remarkably, the western diet triggered time-dependent changes in the mitochondrial lipidome, whereas the "nonmitochondrial" lipidome showed little difference with levels of hepatic steatosis or the presence of fibrosis. In mitochondria, the changes in the lipidome preceded hepatic fibrosis. In particular, two critical phospholipids, phosphatidic acid (PA) and cardiolipin (CL), displayed opposite responses in mitochondria. Decrease in CL and increase in PA were concurrent with an increase of coenzyme Q. Electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy superoxide spin trapping and Cu2+ measurement showed the progressive increase in oxidative stress in the liver. Overall, these results suggest mitochondrial lipid modifications could act as an early event in mitochondrial dysfunction and NAFLD progression.

| S-EPMC8257344 | biostudies-literature

Lifestyle modification in NAFLD/NASH: Facts and figures.

Project description:The development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is closely linked to lifestyle factors, namely excessive caloric intake coupled with reduced physical activity and exercise. This review aims to examine the evidence behind lifestyle change as a tool to improve hepatic steatosis and liver histology in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease/non-alcoholic steatohepatitis. Furthermore, potential barriers to adopting lifestyle changes and strategies to overcome these barriers in the clinical setting are discussed.

| S-EPMC7005657 | biostudies-literature

Current and future pharmacological therapies for NAFLD/NASH.

Project description:Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most prevalent liver disease worldwide, and there is no approved pharmacotherapy. The efficacy of vitamin E and pioglitazone has been established in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a progressive form of NAFLD. GLP-1RA and SGLT2 inhibitors, which are currently approved for use in diabetes, have shown early efficacy in NASH, and also have beneficial cardiovascular or renal effects. Innovative NASH therapies include four main pathways. The first approach is targeting hepatic fat accumulation. Medications in this approach include modulation of peroxisome proliferator-activator receptors (e.g., pemafibrate, elafibranor), medications targeting farnesoid X receptor axis [obeticholic acid; OCA)], inhibitors of de novo lipogenesis (aramchol, ACC inhibitor), and fibroblast growth factor-21 analogues. A second target is oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis. This class of drug includes apoptosis signaling kinase 1 (ASK1) inhibitor and emricasan (an irreversible caspase inhibitor). A third target is intestinal microbiomes and metabolic endotoxemia. Several agents are in ongoing trials, including IMMe124, TLR4 antagonist, and solithromycin (macrolide antibiotics). The final target is hepatic fibrosis, which is strongly associated with all-cause or liver-related mortality in NASH. Antifibrotic agents are a cysteine-cysteine motif chemokine receptor-2/5 antagonist (cenicriviroc; CVC) and galectin 3 antagonist. Among a variety of medications in development, four agents such as OCA, elafibranor, ASK1 inhibitor, and CVC are currently being evaluated in an international phase 3 trial for the treatment of NASH. Within the next few years, the availability of therapeutic options for NASH will hopefully curb the rising trend of NASH-related diseases.

| S-EPMC5847174 | biostudies-literature

Effects of NAFLD/NASH on hepatic gene expression.

Project description:To characterize gene expression changes in arachidonic acid metabolism pathway genes in the presense of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)/non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) mice administered were administered an atherogenic diet for a period of four weeks. Administration of the atherogenic diet resulted in significant enrichment of the arachidonic acid metabolism pathway by gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA). The core enrichment subset of genes was down-regulated in mice administered the atherogenic diet and the majority of the genes that were down-regulated were cytochrome P450s. A total of 4 wild-type mice were administered a standard diet (STD; control group) and 4 wild-type mice were administered a HFHC diet (HFHC).

2014-01-03 | E-GEOD-53381 | biostudies-arrayexpress

Targeting T Cell Subtypes for NAFLD and NAFLD-Related HCC Treatment: An Opinion.

Project description: Not available

| S-EPMC8637206 | biostudies-literature