Chronic Liver Disease in the Obstetric Patient

LncRNA NEAT1 in the pathogenesis of liver-related diseases

Nuclear paraspeckle assembly transcript 1 (NEAT1) is a long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) that is widely expressed in a variety of mammalian cell types. Altered expression levels of the lncRNA NEAT1 have been reported in liver-related disorders including cancer, fatty liver disease, liver fibrosis, viral hepatitis, and hepatic ischemia. lncRNA NEAT1 mostly acts as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) to sponge various miRNAs (miRs) to regulate different functions. In regard to hepatic cancers, the elevated expression of NEAT1 has been reported to have a relation with the proliferation, migration, angiogenesis, apoptosis, as well as epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of cancer cells. Furthermore, NEAT1 upregulation has contributed to the pathogenesis of other liver diseases such as fibrosis. In this review, we summarize and discuss the molecular mechanisms by which NEAT1 contributes to liver-related disorders including acute liver failure, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), liver fibrosis, and liver carcinoma, providing novel insights and introducing NEAT1 as a potential therapeutic target in these diseases.

Long-Term Exposure to Fine Particulate Matter and the Risk of Chronic Liver Diseases: A Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies

Although fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is a known carcinogen, evidence of the association between PM2.5 and chronic liver disease is controversial. In the present meta-analysis study, we reviewed epidemiological studies to strengthen evidence for the association between PM2.5 and chronic liver disease. We searched three online databases from 1990 up to 2022. The random-effect model was applied for detection of overall risk estimates. Sixteen eligible studies, including one cross-sectional study, one retrospective cohort study, and 14 prospective cohort studies, fulfilled inclusion criteria with more than 330 thousand participants from 13 countries. Overall risk estimates of chronic liver disease for 10 μg/m3 increase in PM2.5 was 1.27 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.19−1.35, p < 0.001). We further analyzed the relationship between PM2.5 exposure and different chronic liver diseases. The results showed that increments in PM2.5 exposure significantly increased the risk of liver cancer, liver cirrhosis, and fatty liver disease (hazard ratio (HR) = 1.23, 95% CI: 1.14−1.33; HR = 1.17, 95% CI: 1.06−1.29; HR = 1.51, 95% CI: 1.09−2.08, respectively). Our meta-analysis indicated long-term exposure to PM2.5 was associated with increased risk of chronic liver disease. Moreover, future researches should be focused on investigating subtypes of chronic liver diseases and specific components of PM2.5.