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World J Gastroenterol. 2012 December 7; 18(45): 6546-6551.
Published online 2012 December 7. doi:
10.3748/wjg.v18.i45.6546.
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Copyright©2012
Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
Genetic and epigenetic variants influencing the development
of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
Introduction Only
Full Text Available Here
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the most common
forms of chronic liver diseases and a cause of elevated serum aminotransferases
worldwide. The prevalence of NAFLD in the general population of Western
countries ranges from 20% to 30%[1-3]. Due to the
alterations of diet structure and life style, the prevalence of NAFLD in
developing countries has been increasing rapidly[4]. Recent
studies, including one from our group indicate that the prevalence of NAFLD in
Chinese population is about 15%[5-7]. The term
NAFLD encompasses a morphological spectrum of diseases, ranging from simple
fatty liver (SFL) to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and hepatic cirrhosis,
which may progress to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). SFL generally has a benign
prognosis. Only a minority of them develop NASH, which is characterized by
inflammation, fibrosis and liver cell injury[8,9].
NAFLD has been shown to be associated with metabolic syndrome
(MetS), which comprises obesity, type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia and high blood
pressure with insulin resistance being the central mechanism. NAFLD is presently
considered the hepatic manifestation of MetS[5,6,8,10].
It is generally believed that environmental and genetic
factors interact to produce NAFLD phenotype and determine its progression.
However, the detailed pathogenesis that determines which individual develops
NAFLD remains unclear. Recently, the emerging field of epigenetics shed lights
on the pathogenesis of chronic liver disease including NAFLD[11,12]. Elucidation of genetic and epigenetic
factors that predispose an individual to NAFLD may lead to development of
noninvasive biomarkers for early diagnosis of NAFLD and may allow early
preventive and therapeutic strategies for the people at the high risk. This
review summarizes recent contributions to the field of the genetic and
epigenetic variations that influence the development of NAFLD...
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