Changes in antiviral treatment rate for hepatitis B virus before hepatocellular carcinoma diagnosis: a nationwide Korean study.

Background And Aims: Antiviral treatment (AVT) reduces hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation and hepatocsellular carcinoma (HCC) development; however, the impact of AVT timing - before versus after HCC diagnosis - on prognosis remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the current status, changes, and clinical outcomes of AVT before HCC diagnosis in Korea.

Methods: Data were extracted from the Korean National Health Insurance Service for patients newly diagnosed with HBV-related HCC from 2008 to 2018.

Immune Landscape Changes in MASLD and the Effects of 11β-HSD1 Inhibition Revealed by Single-Cell Mass Cytometry.

Background: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) affects nearly one-fourth of the global population, yet effective diagnostics and treatments remain limited. Systemic immune dysregulation plays a key role in MASLD pathogenesis, highlighting the value of immune profiling.

Methods: In this study, we used high-dimensional single-cell mass cytometry (CyTOF) to analyze peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from healthy donors (n = 6), MASLD patients (n = 4), and MASLD patients treated with an 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β-HSD1) inhibitor (n = 2).

Biomarker-Driven Optimization of Saponin Therapy in MASLD: From Mouse Models to Human Liver Organoids.

(1) Background: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is characterized by liver damage similar to alcoholic fatty liver disease, including triglyceride infiltration of hepatocytes, regardless of alcohol consumption. It leads to progressive liver damage, such as loss of liver function, cirrhosis, and liver cancer, and the response rate of drugs under clinical research is less than 50%. There is an urgent need for biomarkers to evaluate the efficacy of these drugs.

Impact of metabolic dysfunction on treatment responses to nucleos(t)ide analogues in chronic hepatitis B: a retrospective multi-center REAL-B cohort study.

Background: Metabolic dysfunction is associated with liver disease but it is unclear if it would impact responses to antiviral treatment in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients.

Methods: Using data from an international consortium of 4507 treatment-naïve CHB patients who initiated nucleos(t)ide analogues (NAs) between January 2004 and August 2024 from 32 centers and propensity-score matching (PSM) to balance the background of patients with and without metabolic disease (diabetes, obesity, dyslipidemia, or hypertension), we compared their biochemical (BR), virologic (VR), and complete (CR) response.

Findings: More than half (54.

Misclassification of Alcohol Use Disorder in MASLD and MetALD: Prevalence, Clinical Characteristics, and Outcomes.

Background/aims: Within metabolic dysfunction and alcohol-associated liver disease (MetALD), there exists a continuum where the condition can conceptually shift between being metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and alcoholic liver disease. However, alcohol use disorder (AUD) can be included in these diagnoses. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and clinical characteristics of misclassified AUD among patients with MASLD and MetALD.

Cost-effectiveness of advanced hepatic fibrosis screening in individuals with suspected MASLD identified by serologic noninvasive tests.

Our study assessed the cost-effectiveness of screening for hepatic fibrosis in cases suspected of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) using serological noninvasive tests like the fatty liver index (FLI) and hepatic steatosis index (HSI). We applied a decision tree and Markov model from a healthcare system perspective to estimate life-years, quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), costs, and the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) for screening versus no screening in the United States. Prevalence of advanced hepatic fibrosis in individuals suspected of having MASLD was significantly higher when defined by FLI (10.

Efficacy and safety of time-restricted eating in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease.

Background & Aims: Time-restricted eating (TRE) may improve weight loss, insulin resistance, and body composition, which are key factors in the pathophysiology of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). However, evidence on the efficacy of TRE in patients with MASLD is limited. This study aimed to evaluate the potential benefits of TRE in patients with overweight or obesity and MASLD.

Impact of cardiometabolic risk factors on hepatic fibrosis and clinical outcomes in MASLD: A population-based multi-cohort study.

Background & Aims: Evaluating five cardiometabolic risk factors (CMRFs) is crucial for diagnosing metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). This study investigated the impact of CMRFs on hepatic fibrosis and long-term clinical outcomes in patients with MASLD.

Methods: Two cross-sectional cohorts (Korean magnetic resonance elastography [n = 6,684] and US vibration-controlled transient elastography [n = 6,230]) were included to assess the impact of five CMRFs and their combinations on hepatic fibrosis.

Cost-effectiveness analysis of MASLD screening using FIB-4 based two-step algorithm in the medical check-up.

Screening for metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) across the entire general population is not currently a recommended strategy. However, it is not uncommon to receive a medical check-up or health check-up for a various of reasons. We tried to investigate whether advanced fibrosis screening in MASLD patients is cost-effective for adults aged 40-49 years during medical or health check-up.

Limited use of FIB-4 index in patients under 65 years of age with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Aim: Screening for liver fibrosis holds significant importance in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) due to their elevated risk of advanced hepatic fibrosis. However, it is recognized that the diagnostic performance of the Fibrosis-4 (FIB-4) index is relatively low in T2DM patients. Our study aims to explore the potential and limitations of utilizing FIB-4 as a screening tool in patients with T2DM.

Impacts of metabolic syndrome diseases on long-term outcomes of chronic hepatitis B patients treated with nucleos(t)ide analogues.

Background/aims: Given the increase in prevalence of metabolic diseases, we investigated their long-term impacts on the outcomes of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients receiving nucleos(t)ide analogue (NA) treatment.

Methods: We analyzed data from CHB patients for whom initiated NA treatment from 30 centers. We balanced patient characteristics with and without metabolic disease (diabetes, obesity, dyslipidemia, and hypertension) via propensity-score matching (PSM) to evaluate adverse outcomes.

Adenosine triphosphate-binding pocket inhibitor for mixed lineage kinase domain-like protein attenuated alcoholic liver disease necroptosis-independent pathway.

Background: Mixed lineage kinase domain-like protein (MLKL) serves as a critical mediator in necroptosis, a form of regulated cell death linked to various liver diseases. This study aims to specifically investigate the role of MLKL's adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-binding pocket in facilitating necroptosis-independent pathways that may contribute to liver disease progression. By focusing on this mechanism, we seek to identify potential therapeutic targets that can modulate MLKL activity, offering new strategies for the prevention and treatment of liver-related pathologies.

Clinical Course and Prognosis of Long-Term Survivors of Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Background And Aims: This study investigated the long-term prognosis and clinical course of patients who survived for more than 5 years after hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) diagnosis.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study used data from the Korean National Health Insurance Service database. A total of 35,348 subjects newly diagnosed with HCC between January 2008 and December 2010 were followed up until December 2018.

A novel 11β-HSD1 inhibitor ameliorates liver fibrosis by inhibiting the notch signaling pathway and increasing NK cell population.

11β-Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β-HSD1) regulates hepatic glucose output and is implicated in liver fibrosis. We aimed to investigate the anti-fibrotic effect of a novel 11β-HSD1 inhibitor in a thioacetamide (TAA)-induced liver fibrosis mouse model. Mice were administered TAA for 19 weeks and treated with 11β-HSD1 inhibitor for the last 9 weeks.

Molecular Clustering of Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease Based on Transcriptome Analysis.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a complex metabolic disorder with a diverse spectrum. This study aimed to classify patients with MASLD into molecular subtypes based on the underlying pathophysiology. We performed high-throughput RNA sequencing on 164 liver tissue samples from healthy controls and patients with MASLD.

Multimodal Fusion-Based Lightweight Model for Enhanced Generalization in Drug-Target Interaction Prediction.

Predicting drug-target interactions (DTIs) with precision is a crucial challenge in the quest for efficient and cost-effective drug discovery. Existing DTI prediction models often require significant computational resources because of the intricate and exceptionally lengthy protein target sequences. This study introduces MMF-DTI, a lightweight model that uses multimodal fusion, to improve the generalizability of DTI predictions without sacrificing computational efficiency.

Aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index outperforms Fibrosis-4 in 2843 Korean patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease.

Aim: The definition of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) has recently been proposed. We aim to investigate the diagnostic efficacy of noninvasive fibrosis markers in predicting liver fibrosis in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), and MASLD.

Methods: This retrospective study involved 2843 patients diagnosed with steatotic liver disease at six tertiary hospitals in South Korea.

Modified FIB-4 Index in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus with Steatosis: A Non-Linear Predictive Model for Advanced Hepatic Fibrosis.

The Fibrosis-4 (FIB-4) index is widely recommended as a first-tier method for screening advanced hepatic fibrosis; however, its diagnostic performance is known to be suboptimal in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). We aim to propose a modified FIB-4, using the parameters of the existing FIB-4, tailored specifically for diabetic patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). A total of 1503 patients who underwent liver biopsy were divided into T2DM ( = 517) and non-T2DM ( = 986) groups.

Distinct characteristics of MetALD (metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease with greater alcohol consumption) in the general population.

Aim: The term MetALD has been introduced to describe individuals who have metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) with greater alcohol consumption, according to the new nomenclature for steatotic liver disease (SLD). This study aims to evaluate the prevalence and clinical characteristics of MetALD in the general population.

Methods: This study is a retrospective, cross-sectional analysis that utilizes the population-based data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) undertaken between 2019 and 2021.