Abstract 2110: Reprogramming of DNA methylation in NAFLD progression

Abstract

Abstract NAFLD has several stages in its progression that can lead to non-alcoholic fatty liver (NAFL), non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), cirrhosis, and even hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Whereas NAFL is a simple steatosis, NASH is characterized by cell injury, inflammation, and hepatocyte ballooning that may further progress to fibrosis, cirrhosis, and HCC. DNA methylation is a relatively stable epigenetic mechanism that can regulate gene expression patterns to establish cell identity. Here we investigated liver DNA methylation in individuals with simple steatosis and NASH, and further tested if these alterations were associated with clinical phenotypes. NAFLD is associated with abnormal DNA methylation, Advanced NAFLD is associated with hypomethylation of genes involved in TNF receptor signaling and apoptosis, and hypermethylation of genes associated with lipid metabolism, digestion and transport. We suggest that reprogramming of DNA methylation contributes to NAFLD progression and aberrant DNA methylation could be a predictive biomarker of NASH associated HCC. Citation Format: Hanyong Go, Seon-Kyu Kim, Mirang Kim. Reprogramming of DNA methylation in NAFLD progression [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2023; Part 1 (Regular and Invited Abstracts); 2023 Apr 14-19; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(7_Suppl):Abstract nr 2110.