Accumulated fat in steatotic livers: effects on SREBP-2 expression and subsequent clinical outcomes

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) ranges in severity from steatosis to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis with a potential for progression to cirrhosis and hepatocellular cancer, making NAFLD a serious public health problem. This study aimed to determine if amount of fat (total, macrovesicular and microvesicular) accumulated in the liver during steatosis is linked to increased SREBP-2 expression and to the subsequent clinical outcomes of the patients. Annotated liver tissues were provided by the Grosshadern Hospital Tissue Bank. Briefly, patients were matched by BMI, age and gender. Liver sections were examin…