New Rutgers research says that a hormone that triggers puberty and controls fertility in humans might be used to treat non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
The Journal of Clinical Investigation reads that a study shows that a modified version of the natural hormone, kisspeptin, can be used to treat non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
In addition to playing key roles in pubertal development and maintaining reproductive function, kisspeptin, has also been linked to appetite and sexual attraction.
NAFLD, the most common form of chronic liver disease that affects children and adults, is linked to the rise in obesity and Type 2 diabetes.
NAFLD, a silent disease begins with the accumulation of fat in the liver, resulting in a condition known as ‘fatty liver.’
As the disease worsens, the liver becomes inflamed resulting in non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, NASH.
This is followed by fibrosis and cirrhosis, where the liver becomes scarred and irreversibly damaged. Currently, there are no approved therapeutics to treat NASH.
The researchers fed mice a high-fat, high-sugar ‘Western’ diet to induce obesity and NAFLD. The study showed that kisspeptin given to these mice protected them from the development of fatty liver, NASH and fibrosis.
Kisspeptin works by binding its receptor, a protein called KISS1R. The study also showed that when KISS1R is deleted from liver cells, kisspeptin cannot function and mice on western diet develop fatty liver.
The experiments uncover a powerful relationship between kisspeptin and the reduction of liver fat and fibrosis.
The study found that kisspeptin helps reduce fat deposited in the liver and reverse more advanced disease.
Co-author, Vinod K Rustgi, director of hepatology and a distinguished Professor of Medicine at the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, said, “The mechanism by which kisspeptin functions in the liver is now understood. Blood kisspeptin levels change in human NAFLD patients and in a mouse model of NAFLD.
“This work shows the kisspeptin receptor signaling pathway has a potential therapeutic role in NAFLD,”
“It does this by protecting against the development of fat in the liver and reducing inflammation and fibrosis. As such, it has the potential to favorably impact the health and lives of millions of patients around the globe.”
Moshmi Bhattacharya, an associate professor in the Department of Medicine at the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, who led the study along with co-author Andy Babwah, an associate professor in pediatrics at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, initiated the study to decipher the roles of kisspeptin in the liver, under healthy and obese conditions.
