NASH: towards a new treatment for fatty liver disease

One of the risks associated with obesity is the development of metabolic diseases, including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (also known as “NASH” Or “fatty liver disease”).

Fatty liver disease: a need for new treatments

NASH is estimated to affect approximately 25% of the world’s population and, although it often has no symptoms, can lead to serious liver damage or cirrhosis if it continues to progress. There is currently no cure for it, except for hygienic and dietary measures. This is why scientists have tried to successfully discover the factors involved in the development of this disease.

“There is a protein called ZAK-alpha that “signals” to the rest of the metabolic system that cells are stressed. This sets off a chain reaction that leads, among other things, to fatty liver disease,” Professor Simon Bekker-Jensen of the University of Copenhagen explains in a press release.

Treatment of fatty liver disease: the effect of ZAK-alpha protein

His team confirmed this hypothesis using mouse and zebrafish cellular models in which the ZAK-alpha protein was removed and the model exposed to stress.

“Mice are a very good model for studying the human metabolic system… When mice become obese, they develop many of the same metabolic diseases as those observed in humans,” continues Professor Bekker-Jensen. “The mice in which we deactivated the ZAK-alpha protein were much healthier than those who had it. At older ages, they were more active, had stronger muscles and, most importantly, did not develop metabolic diseases “, he elaborates.

Treatment of fatty liver disease: a new drug target

The researchers believe that the results demonstrate that ZAK-alpha could constitute a useful therapeutic avenue to treat fatty liver disease. “ZAK-alpha is a well-established drug target that can be inhibited by small molecules,” says Professor Bekker-Jensen. “We therefore believe that this new knowledge will attract the interest of many companies actively working on the development and testing of drugs for metabolic diseases, including fatty liver disease. he believes.

For such a drug to be brought to market, the next step will be to carry out clinical studies. “While effective and affordable medications for diabetes already exist, I see great potential for fatty liver disease, which remains one of the most important unsolved medical problems today,” concludes the scientist.

His study is published in Science.