Synergistic effects of alcohol and high-fat diet on hepatic injury – a new model to study alcoholic steatohepatitis

Aims: Chronic alcohol consumption and the metabolic syndrome are well-identified causes of steatosis, steatohepatitis and liver fibrosis. However, it is incompletely understood how alcohol and obesity interact and whether the combined effects on the progression of liver injury are additive or synergistic. The aim of this study was to establish and analyze an experimental murine model where we combined chronic alcohol administration with a non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) inducing high-fat diet. Methods: Male C57bl/6 mice (n=5–6) were randomly allocated into four experimental groups receiving either (i) stand…