Inflammation is associated with liver function markers, independent of other metabolic risk factors in overweight women

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease common in obesity, is characterised by fatty infiltration to the liver and can progress to steatohepatitis. Inflammation is a predictor of metabolic disease, but the relationship between inflammation and liver disease is unclear. This study determines whether liver function enzymes are associated with markers of systemic inflammation. In a group of 249 overweight women, fasting blood samples were collected and analysed for insulin, glucose, lipids, C-reactive protein (CRIP), sialic acid (SA), alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and γ-glutamyltransferase. SA and CRP were significant predictors of ALP concentrations, independent of metabolic syndrome features (β=0.35, p<0.0001 and β=0.20, p=0.004). SA and CRP showed significant incremental increases across groups based on the number of features of metabolic disease, which persisted after adjustment for body mass index (β=0.32, p<0.0001 and β=0.16, p=0.02). These data suggest that systemic inflammation is significantly associated with liver function markers, independent of other metabolic risk factors.