Decreased Serum zinc, selenium, and vitamin E as possible risk factors of hepatic fibrosis in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Ahmed Alamir Mahmoud Abdallah; Mona Mohammed Abdelrahman; Haitham Mohammad Al-Amir Shahat Attia; Alshimaa Hafez; Shimaa Anwar Rashed; Yasser Abdelkarim Amin; Shimaa Badawy Hemdan

doi:10.1177/02601060221103032

Decreased Serum zinc, selenium, and vitamin E as possible risk factors of hepatic fibrosis in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Nutr Health. 2022 May 22:2601060221103032. doi: 10.1177/02601060221103032. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Ahmed Alamir Mahmoud Abdallah¹, Mona Mohammed Abdelrahman², Haitham Mohammad Al-Amir Shahat Attia³, Alshimaa Hafez¹, Shimaa Anwar Rashed⁴, Yasser Abdelkarim Amin⁵, Shimaa Badawy Hemdan¹

Affiliations

¹ Medical Biochemistry Department, Faculty of Medicine, 68889Sohag University, Sohag, Egypt.
² Tropical Medicine and Gastroenterology Department, Faculty of Medicine, 68889Sohag University, Sohag, Egypt.
³ Internal Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, 68889Sohag University, Sohag, Egypt.
⁴ Clinical and Chemical Pathology Department, Faculty of Medicine, 68889Sohag University, Sohag, Egypt.
⁵ Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology Department, Faculty of Medicine, 68889Sohag University, Sohag, Egypt.

PMID: 35603860
DOI: 10.1177/02601060221103032

Abstract

Backgrounds: The incidence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has been significantly growing in recent years. Although the pathophysiology of fibrosis progression in NAFLD is not yet known, oxidative stress and inflammation have been known to have a major role in the development of NASH. Understanding the impact of micronutrients in NAFLD could potentially help us better understand NAFLD pathogenesis.

Aims: Assessing the serum levels of Zn, Se, and Vitamin E and their relation to the development of hepatic fibrosis in NAFLD patients.

Methods: This study included 80 NAFLD patients and 40 healthy controls. All of the patients were subjected to abdominal ultrasound and FibroScan examination (to estimate hepatic fibrosis and steatosis degree), and the serum levels of Zn, Se, and vitamin E were evaluated.

Results: A statistically significant difference in the serum levels of Zn and Se was observed between the NAFLD group and the control group (P-value = 0.04 and 0.05, respectively). The serum levels of Zn and Se were independently related to the presence of hepatic fibrosis in NAFLD. However, serum vitamin E was not related to the severity of NAFLD. Furthermore, no significant difference in the levels of Zn, Se, and vitamin E was observed between the different groups of NAFLD patients categorized according to the degree of steatosis and the control group.

Conclusions: Reduced serum levels of Zn and Se can be considered a possible risk factor for hepatic fibrosis in NAFLD. Deficiency in these micronutrients could play a role in the pathogenesis of NAFLD.

Keywords: NAFLD; hepatic fibrosis; selenium; vitamin E; zinc.