Wajsbrot NB, Leite NC, Salles GF, Villela-Nogueira CA. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and the impact of genetic, epigenetic and environmental factors in the offspring. World J Gastroenterol 2022; 28(25): 2890-2899 [PMID: 35978876 DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v28.i25.2890]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Cristiane A Villela-Nogueira, FAASLD, MD, PhD, Full Professor, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rua Professor Rodolpho Paulo Rocco, 255 Room 9E16, Rio de Janeiro 22750-240, Brazil. crisvillelanog@gmail.com
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Minireviews
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Gastroenterol. Jul 7, 2022; 28(25): 2890-2899 Published online Jul 7, 2022. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v28.i25.2890
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and the impact of genetic, epigenetic and environmental factors in the offspring
Natalia Balassiano Wajsbrot, Nathalie Carvalho Leite, Gil F Salles, Cristiane A Villela-Nogueira
Natalia Balassiano Wajsbrot, Nathalie Carvalho Leite, Division of Hepatology, Clementino Fraga Filho University Hospital, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 20941-913, Brazil
Gil F Salles, Cristiane A Villela-Nogueira, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 22750-240, Brazil
Author contributions: Leite NC, Salles GF and Villela-Nogueira CA contributed to study design and critical revision of the manuscript; all authors contributed to data analysis, wrote the initial draft and approved the final version.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors have nothing to declare.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Cristiane A Villela-Nogueira, FAASLD, MD, PhD, Full Professor, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rua Professor Rodolpho Paulo Rocco, 255 Room 9E16, Rio de Janeiro 22750-240, Brazil. crisvillelanog@gmail.com
Received: January 17, 2022 Peer-review started: January 17, 2022 First decision: March 8, 2022 Revised: March 20, 2022 Accepted: May 14, 2022 Article in press: May 14, 2022 Published online: July 7, 2022
Abstract
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease worldwide and is strongly associated with metabolic deregulation. More recently, a significant impact of parental NAFLD in the offspring was demonstrated and has been widely discussed. However, pathogenetic pathways implicated in the inheritance by the offspring and relatives are still under debate. Probably, multiple mechanisms are involved as well as in NAFLD pathogenesis itself. Among the multifactorial involved mechanisms, genetic, epigenetic and environmental backgrounds are strongly related to NAFLD development in the offspring. Thus, based on recent evidence from the available literature concerning genetic, epigenetic and environmental disease modifiers, this review aimed to discuss the relationship between parental NAFLD and its impact on the offspring.
Core Tip: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a multifactorial disease and familial clustering has been described, although there is still some debate about this association. Among the factors that contribute to the disease in the offspring of NAFLD patients, genetic, epigenetic and environmental factors are the most plausible ones. In this review we describe the main genetic, environmental and epigenetic factors linked to NAFLD and the studies investigating the relation of NAFLD in parents and its offspring. Although there are many experimental studies in animals, there is still much to be elucidated regarding studies and interventions in human beings.
