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MicroRNAs as biomarkers and regulators of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
Author(s) -
Liu Xiao Lin,
Cao Hai Xia,
Fan Jian Gao
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of digestive diseases
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.684
H-Index - 51
eISSN - 1751-2980
pISSN - 1751-2972
DOI - 10.1111/1751-2980.12408
Subject(s) - nonalcoholic fatty liver disease , pathogenesis , disease , microrna , steatosis , medicine , epigenetics , bioinformatics , fatty liver , biomarker , phenotype , liver disease , lipid metabolism , biology , pathology , genetics , gene
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a complicated disease affected by the interaction of environmental and genetic factors; however, the precise pathogenesis of the disease has not been fully determined. There is a need to better understand the pathogenesis of NAFLD and to identify non‐invasive diagnostic modalities. Recent advances in systematic biology and epigenetics have improved our understanding of the genotype–phenotype relationships in NAFLD. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are important regulators of a wide range of biological processes. MiRNAs are extremely stable and protect from RNAase‐mediated degradation in body fluids, making them attractive candidate biomarkers for the early detection of the disease and the monitoring of disease progression. In this review, we summarized the current knowledge on miRNAs as potential biomarkers of NAFLD at different stages and for the prognosis of advanced diseases. Furthermore, we discussed the implications of miRNAs that functioning in lipid metabolism and hepatic steatosis as well as in hepatic inflammation and fibrosis with regard to the pathogenesis of NAFLD.