Relevant Aspects of Nutritional and Dietary Interventions in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Abstract

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the main cause of liver disease worldwide. NAFLD is linked to circumstances such as type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance, obesity, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension. Since the obesity figures and related comorbidities are increasing, NAFLD has turned into a liver problem that has become progressively more common. Currently, there is no effective drug therapy for NAFLD; therefore, interventions in lifestyles remain the first line of treatment. Bearing in mind that adherence rates to this type of treatment are poor, great efforts are currently focused on finding novel therapeutic agents for the prevention in the development of hepatic steatosis and its progression to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and cirrhosis. This review presents a compilation of the scientific evidence found in the last years showing the results of interventions in lifestyle, diet, and behavioral therapies and research results in human, animal and cell models. Possible therapeutic agents ranging from supplementation with vitamins, amino acids, prebiotics, probiotics, symbiotics, polyunsaturated fatty acids and polyphenols to interventions with medicinal plants are analyzed.

Silkworm Sericin: Properties and Biomedical Applications

“…Considering the difficulty in combining physical activity with improved eating habits [151], researches with potential therapeutic agents for obesity are gaining prominence [152]. In this regard, various studies point to the promising effects of sericin on lipid metabolism and obesity.…”

Supplementation with Docosahexaenoic Acid and Extra Virgin Olive Oil Prevents Liver Steatosis Induced by a High‐Fat Diet in Mice through PPAR‐α and Nrf2 Upregulation with Concomitant SREBP‐1c and NF‐kB Downregulation

“…Conventional treatments against NAFLD through life‐style changes are not completely effective, and for this reason, the search for alternate diets is crucial to prevent or reverse NAFLD . Recently, we have proposed that extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) supplementation is a suitable approach to prevent the development of NAFLD .…”

A Synthetic-Biology-Inspired Therapeutic Strategy for Targeting and Treating Hepatogenous Diabetes

“…30,58 Although they are slow-acting, herbal medicines and medical nutrition therapies are recommended for liver disease patients over pharmacotherapies that utilize chemically synthesized drugs, because the former elicit milder metabolic burdens on a defective liver during the unavoidable hepatic first pass of xenobiotics. 7,53,59 Synthetic biology, which is the science of reassembling characterized, optimized, and cataloged biological building blocks to engineer designer cells to solve predetermined problems in biotechnology and medicine, 32 continually leads to novel therapeutic strategies for treating complex multifactorial diseases. 36,[60][61][62] Implants carrying therapeutic designer cells can be engineered for the inducible production of a therapeutic protein with a customizable trigger signal, such as disease markers, 26,63-65 light, 28 food additives, 66,67 or cosmetics, 68 thereby synchronizing the activity of the drugs with a patient's internal health state or lifestyle.…”