Insulin Resistance and NAFLD: A Dangerous Liaison beyond the Genetics

Over the last decade, the understanding of the association between insulin resistance (IR) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has dramatically evolved. There is clear understanding that carriers of some common genetic variants, i.e., the patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing 3 (PNP...

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Main Author: Melania Manco
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2017-08-01
Series:Children
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/4/8/74
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spelling doaj-9de0193b333f4304b69da0e021cf29c92021-04-02T05:17:35ZengMDPI AGChildren2227-90672017-08-01487410.3390/children4080074children4080074Insulin Resistance and NAFLD: A Dangerous Liaison beyond the GeneticsMelania Manco0Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Research Unit for Multifactorial Diseases, Via Ferdinando Baldelli 38, 00146 Rome, ItalyOver the last decade, the understanding of the association between insulin resistance (IR) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has dramatically evolved. There is clear understanding that carriers of some common genetic variants, i.e., the patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing 3 (PNPLA3) or the transmembrane 6 superfamily member 2 (TM6SF2) are at risk of developing severe forms of NAFLD even in the presence of reduced or absent IR. In contrast, there are obese patients with “metabolic” (non-genetically driven) NAFLD who present severe IR. Owing to the epidemic obesity and the high prevalence of these genetic variants in the general population, the number of pediatric cases with combination of genetic and metabolic NAFLD is expected to be very high. Gut dysbiosis, excessive dietary intake of saturated fats/fructose-enriched foods and exposure to some chemicals contribute all to both IR and NAFLD, adding further complexity to the understanding of their relationship. Once NAFLD is established, IR can accelerate the progression to the more severe form of liver derangement that is the non-alcoholic steatohepatitis.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/4/8/74insulin resistancenon-alcoholic fatty liver diseasesobesity
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Melania Manco
spellingShingle Melania Manco
Insulin Resistance and NAFLD: A Dangerous Liaison beyond the Genetics
Children
insulin resistance
non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases
obesity
author_facet Melania Manco
author_sort Melania Manco
title Insulin Resistance and NAFLD: A Dangerous Liaison beyond the Genetics
title_short Insulin Resistance and NAFLD: A Dangerous Liaison beyond the Genetics
title_full Insulin Resistance and NAFLD: A Dangerous Liaison beyond the Genetics
title_fullStr Insulin Resistance and NAFLD: A Dangerous Liaison beyond the Genetics
title_full_unstemmed Insulin Resistance and NAFLD: A Dangerous Liaison beyond the Genetics
title_sort insulin resistance and nafld: a dangerous liaison beyond the genetics
publisher MDPI AG
series Children
issn 2227-9067
publishDate 2017-08-01
description Over the last decade, the understanding of the association between insulin resistance (IR) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has dramatically evolved. There is clear understanding that carriers of some common genetic variants, i.e., the patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing 3 (PNPLA3) or the transmembrane 6 superfamily member 2 (TM6SF2) are at risk of developing severe forms of NAFLD even in the presence of reduced or absent IR. In contrast, there are obese patients with “metabolic” (non-genetically driven) NAFLD who present severe IR. Owing to the epidemic obesity and the high prevalence of these genetic variants in the general population, the number of pediatric cases with combination of genetic and metabolic NAFLD is expected to be very high. Gut dysbiosis, excessive dietary intake of saturated fats/fructose-enriched foods and exposure to some chemicals contribute all to both IR and NAFLD, adding further complexity to the understanding of their relationship. Once NAFLD is established, IR can accelerate the progression to the more severe form of liver derangement that is the non-alcoholic steatohepatitis.
topic insulin resistance
non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases
obesity
url https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/4/8/74
work_keys_str_mv AT melaniamanco insulinresistanceandnafldadangerousliaisonbeyondthegenetics
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