EFHD1 may turn fatty liver disease into injury, with inhibition reducing scarring by up to 60%
Obesity-related metabolic liver disease affects hundreds of millions of people worldwide, but only some of those livers develop scarring, become inflamed and eventually fail. University of Utah researchers have identified a protein, EFHD1, that appears to drive that transition by triggering an out-of-place antiviral immune response.
Obesity-related liver disease affects millions, but not all livers progress to scarring and failure. Researchers at the University of Utah discovered a protein, EFHD1, that may trigger this progression. EFHD1 activates an antiviral immune response in mitochondria, which can damage the liver. Inhibiting EFHD1 reduces liver damage by up to 60%, even in high-fat diet conditions. This finding could lead to new therapies to prevent liver injury.
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