Abstract
Nonalcoholic hepatitis (NASH) is the progressive inflammatory form of nonalcoholic
fatty liver disease. Although the mechanisms of hepatic inflammation in NASH remain
incompletely understood, emerging literature implicates the proinflammatory environment
created by toxic lipid-induced hepatocyte injury, termed lipotoxicity. Interestingly,
numerous NASH-promoting kinases in hepatocytes, immune cells, and adipocytes are activated
by the lipotoxic insult associated with obesity. In the current review, we discuss
recent advances in NASH-promoting kinases as disease mediators and therapeutic targets.
The focus of the review is mainly on the mitogen-activated protein kinases including
mixed lineage kinase 3, apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1, c-Jun N-terminal kinase,
and p38 MAPK; the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress kinases protein kinase RNA-like
ER kinase and inositol-requiring protein-1α; as well as the Rho-associated protein
kinase 1. We also discuss various pharmacological agents targeting these stress kinases
in NASH that are under different phases of development.
Keywords
mitogen-activated protein kinases - Rho-associated protein kinase - endoplasmic reticulum
stress - nonalcoholic steatohepatitis