Comparisons of parallel potential biomarkers of 1H-MRS-measured hepatic lipid content in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

摘要

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the main cause of chronic liver disease. This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate whether parallel clinical features and serum markers are related to the severity of NAFLD. We enrolled 111 participants with different metabolic syndrome (MetS) scores (zero, n?=?22; one, n?=?19; two, n?=?22; and?≥?three, n?=?48) and used 1H-MRS to measure liver fat content. Biochemical profiles and potential biomarkers of NAFLD were measured in fasting plasma. We found that 1H-MRS-measured fat content was significantly associated with MetS score ≥1, endotoxin, and hs-CRP. Ordinal logistic regression analysis revealed that MetS score ≥2 and endotoxin were predictive of NAFLD (1H-MRS??5%) and that endotoxin, hs-CRP, and malondialdehyde (MDA) were predictive of NAFLD with liver injury (1H-MRS??9.67%). Endotoxin plus MetS score was shown to be the most accurate predictor of overall NAFLD (AUC?=?0.854; (95% CI: 0.785-0.924), P??0.001), and endotoxin plus hs-CRP and MDA was found to be predictive of NAFLD with liver injury (0.868; (0.801-0.936), P??0.001). These results suggest that MetS score plus certain serum biomarkers with 1H-MRS findings may hold promise for developing an effective model for monitoring the severity of NAFLD.