Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a common cause of hepatic dysfunction.
The disease spectrum ranges from hepatic steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis
(NASH). The aim of this study was to identify metabolic differences in murine models
of simple hepatic steatosis and NASH for the distinction of these NAFLD stages. For
12 weeks, male BALB/c mice were fed either a control or two different high-fat diets
leading to hepatic steatosis and NASH, respectively. Metabolic differences were determined
by independent component analysis (ICA) of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra
of lipophilic and hydrophilic liver extracts, and urine specimens. The results from
ICA clearly discriminated the three investigated groups. Discriminatory biomarkers
in the lipophilic liver extracts were free cholesterol, cholesterol ester and lipid
methylene. Discrimination of the hydrophilic liver extracts was mainly mediated by
betaine, glucose, and lactate, whereas in urine taurine, trimethylamine-N-oxide, and
trimethylamine were the most discriminatory biomarkers. In conclusion, NMR metabolite
fingerprinting of spot urine specimens may allow the noninvasive distinction of steatosis
and NASH.
Literatur:
Klein, M.S., Dorn, C., Saugspier, M., Hellerbrand, C., Oefner, P.J., Gronwald, W.
Discrimination of steatosis and NASH in mice using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.
Metabolomics, published online 24 September 2010
Urine Metabolomics NMR MRS
