Kisspeptin, a naturally occurring hormone functions not just to trigger puberty and control fertility in humans after a new study found that it might also be developed as a new drug to treat non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
The new Rutgers research offers strong evidence that a modified version of the said hormone can be used for NAFLD treatment, a EurekAlert! report specified.
Globally, the condition is the most common type of chronic liver disease affecting both children and adults and is associated with the rise in certain conditions like Type 2 diabetes and obesity.
NAFLD is commonly known as a "silent" disease as it begins with few or no symptoms. It starts with the buildup of fat in the liver, leading to a condition called "fatty liver."
Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
As NAFLD worsens, the liver turns inflamed leading to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis or NASH. This then is followed by fibrosis and cirrhosis, where the liver turns scarred and irreversibly impaired.
In the new research published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, a subset of NASH patients with cirrhosis will develop liver cancer, as well. At present, there are no approved therapeutics for NASH treatment.
The study lead investigator Moshmi Bhattacharya, an associate professor in the Department of Medicine at the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, has spent more than a decade and a half investigating kisspeptin in health and disease.
Kisspeptin, Named After a Hershey Chocolate
Encoded by the KISS1 gene, kisspeptin was discovered in Hershey, Pa., and named after the iconic Hershey chocolate "kisses." Other than playing vital roles in pubertal development and retaining a reproductive function, kisspeptin has been associated with appetite and sexual attention, as well.
Battacharya, together with co-author Andy Babwan, an associate professor in pediatrics at Ruggers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, initiated the research to decipher the functions of kisspeptin in the liver, under both obese and healthy conditions.
Stephania Guzman, the first author of this research is a Ph.D. candidate in Ruggers Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program. This collaborative research also comprised researchers led by the United Kingdom-based Imperial College London's Waljiit Dhillo.
Kisspeptin Shields from NASH, Fatty Liver, and Fibrosis Development
As indicated in a similar News-Medical.Net report, the study investigators fed mice a high-sugar, high-fat Western diet to induce NAFLD and obesity. The study revealed that the kisspeptin injected in the mice shielded them from the development of NASH, fatty liver, and fibrosis.
Findings of the research showed that kisspeptin is helping in the reduction of fat deposited in the liver, as well as the reversal of the more advanced disease.
The mechanism by which this hormone functions in the liver is now understood. Blood kisspeptin levels are changing in human NAFLD patients, as well as in a mouse model of NAFLD.
According to Vinod Rustgi, co-author of the study, director of hepatology, and a Distinguished Professor of Medicine at the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, this research "shows the kisspeptin receptor signaling" that pathway has a promising therapeutic role in NAFLD.
He added it does this by shielding against the development of fat in the liver and reducing fibrosis and inflammation. As such, kisspeptin has the potential to positively affect the health and lives of millions of patients all over the world.
Related information about liver disease is shown on Medical Centric's YouTube video:
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