Dynamics of biochemical parameters when simulating non-alcoholic fatty liver disease of different degrees of severity

Abstract

The aim of this study was to identify biochemical markers to determine the severity of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Materials and methods. In the experiment, we used two variants of the non-alcoholic fatty liver disease model: a mild one – non-alcoholic steatosis and a severe variant – non-alcoholic steatohepatitis. The following biochemical parameters were measured: enzyme activity of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), plasma glucose concentration, total protein (TP), total bilirubin (TBil) and its direct fraction (DF), plasma concentrations of homocysteine, total cholesterol (TC), triacylglycerides (TG), catalase (Cat), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde (MDA).

Results. The severity of developing steatosis and steatohepatitis in the experimental groups was directly related to the way non-alcoholic fatty liver disease was modeled. In the model of steatohepatitis, liver function was impaired to a much greater extent than with steatosis; this difference was manifested in a statistically significant increase in ALT, AST, ALP, TC, Obil, MDA (p<0.001) and a decrease in Cat, SOD (p<0.05).

Conclusion. The study demonstrated the feasibility of determining biochemical markers, including the levels of ALT, AST, OBil, TG, MDA and SOD to optimize the methodology for laboratory diagnosis of the severity of fatty liver disease.