Project description:Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) represents a significant and growing public health concern worldwide, characterized by hepatic steatosis, inflammation, and varying degrees of fibrosis. In vitro models of NASH play a crucial role in elucidating the underlying mechanisms of disease pathogenesis, identifying potential therapeutic targets, and evaluating the efficacy of pharmacological interventions. Several preclinical models of MASH have been developed and are being used extensively to study these areas. While standard cell culture models allow for elucidation of certain molecular pathways involved in MASH pathogenesis, they lack three-dimensional architecture and cellular heterogeneity observed in native liver tissue, potentially limiting their physiological relevance and inability to fully capture the multifactorial nature of the disease Precision cut liver slices from MASH livers retain the complex multicellular architecture of the liver including hepatocyte arrangement, sinusoidal structure, and cellular interactions, but the metabolism deteriorates over a short period of time (usually reported as 2 days). Human liver organoids from iPSCs (induced pluripotent stem cells) retain the genetics of the patients but fail to fully differentiate into hepatocytes or have the liver architecture. Human liver spheroids incubated in a MASH cocktail develop several phenotypic characteristics of a MASH liver, but the small spheroid size precludes extensive histological comparisons to MASH livers. Microphysiological systems (MPS) or “liver on a chip” in which 3D cultures are perfused, maintain many of the physiological functions of the liver owing to precise control over microenvironmental parameters, including fluid flow, nutrient gradients, and mechanical cues. However, MPS are difficult to scale up and have not been developed to reproduce a MASH phenotype. In comparison, bioprinted liver tissues for MASH have many advantages. Organovo’s 3D bioprinted liver tissues are comprised of all major primary liver cells including hepatocytes, endothelial cells, stellates and Kupffer cells, mixed in physiologically relevant ratios. These cells are then bioprinted in precise pre-defined liver specific geometries to recapitulate complexity of the hepatic microenvironment.. This mimicking of tissue architecture enables more accurate representation of cellular interactions, spatial organization, and microenvironmental cues crucial for MASH pathogenesis. The liver tissues developed using this method maintain differentiation and metabolism over several weeks. In this paper, we further demonstrated that upon treatment with a MASH induction cocktail, these liver tissues respond accurately by developing steatosis and fibrosis Tissue response varies depending in response to the complexity of the MASH cocktail.

Project description:Background & Aims Obesity is a major risk factor for metabolic associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) which can progress from metabolic associated steatotic liver (MASL) to metabolic associated steatohepatitis (MASH). There are currently no effective and validated screening tools to stratify obese patients with a greater risk for MASH, independent of liver fibrosis, at a population level. We aimed to characterise the highly abundant and small protein plasma proteomes of worsening MASLD and overlay the liver-secreted proteome to generate a predictive model to stratify patients with and without MASH. Methods Venous blood and liver wedge biopsies were taken from 160 patients undergoing bariatric surgery. MASLD severity was assessed histologically. Liver biopsies from a subset of 96 patients were precision-cut and cultured to assess liver-secreted proteins. Proteomic analysis was performed using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry on the plasma and the incubation medium cutoff the liver slices. Results Current non-invasive scores failed to stratify MASH in our cohort. The top200 plasma proteome exhibited mild changes in patients with MASH compared to those with No pathology, while the SPEA approach identified substantial differences in plasma proteins of patients with MASH compared to those without MASH. Liver-secreted proteins were remodelled in MASH compared to MASL and individuals with No pathology. There were no significant changes in the liver-secreted proteins and plasma proteome when comparing MASL to those with No pathology. The APASHA model, comprised of APOF, PCSK9, AFM, and S100A6, HbA1c % and AZGP1 stratified MASH in the discovery (AUROC: 0.887, p<0.0001) and validation cohorts (AUROC:0.7673, p=0.0002) and outcompeted other non-invasive scores. Conclusions These proteomic investigations provide a detailed description of liver-secreted and plasma proteome with worsening MASLD. MASH remodels plasma and liver-secreted proteins. Plasma proteomics generated the APASHA model validated in two Australian bariatric cohorts. Further investigation is warranted to interrogate the utility of the APASHA model as a non-invasive risk prediction model in additional cohorts. Lay Summary: Metabolic-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), a more advanced form of metabolic-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), alters the levels of many proteins secreted by the liver and in the blood and those. The APASHA model, which is based on proteins that change in the blood or are secreted by the liver in cases of MASH, could potentially be developed into a simple blood test to predict MASH in high-risk groups.

Project description:Background & Aims Obesity is a major risk factor for metabolic associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) which can progress from metabolic associated steatotic liver (MASL) to metabolic associated steatohepatitis (MASH). There are currently no effective and validated screening tools to stratify obese patients with a greater risk for MASH, independent of liver fibrosis, at a population level. We aimed to characterise the highly abundant and small protein plasma proteomes of worsening MASLD and overlay the liver-secreted proteome to generate a predictive model to stratify patients with and without MASH. Methods Venous blood and liver wedge biopsies were taken from 160 patients undergoing bariatric surgery. MASLD severity was assessed histologically. Liver biopsies from a subset of 96 patients were precision-cut and cultured to assess liver-secreted proteins. Proteomic analysis was performed using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry on the plasma and the incubation medium cutoff the liver slices. Results Current non-invasive scores failed to stratify MASH in our cohort. The top200 plasma proteome exhibited mild changes in patients with MASH compared to those with No pathology, while the SPEA approach identified substantial differences in plasma proteins of patients with MASH compared to those without MASH. Liver-secreted proteins were remodelled in MASH compared to MASL and individuals with No pathology. There were no significant changes in the liver-secreted proteins and plasma proteome when comparing MASL to those with No pathology. The APASHA model, comprised of APOF, PCSK9, AFM, and S100A6, HbA1c % and AZGP1 stratified MASH in the discovery (AUROC: 0.887, p<0.0001) and validation cohorts (AUROC:0.7673, p=0.0002) and outcompeted other non-invasive scores. Conclusions These proteomic investigations provide a detailed description of liver-secreted and plasma proteome with worsening MASLD. MASH remodels plasma and liver-secreted proteins. Plasma proteomics generated the APASHA model validated in two Australian bariatric cohorts. Further investigation is warranted to interrogate the utility of the APASHA model as a non-invasive risk prediction model in additional cohorts.

			Action	DRS
	SRR28692820_1.fastq.gz	Fastqsanger.gz
	SRR28692820_2.fastq.gz	Fastqsanger.gz
	SRR28692821_1.fastq.gz	Fastqsanger.gz
	SRR28692821_2.fastq.gz	Fastqsanger.gz
	SRR28692822_1.fastq.gz	Fastqsanger.gz

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RNA-seq analysis of naïve and MASH liver tissue.

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