Genetic studies of abdominal MRI data identify genes regulating hepcidin as major determinants of liver iron concentration

Liver disease constitutes the third most common cause of premature death in the UK, and its prevalence is substantially higher compared to other countries in Western Europe.[1 –3] Excess liver iron is associated with increased severity and progression of liver diseases including cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in individuals with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), [4–6] and is the direct cause of liver disease in those with hereditary haemochromatosis a nd thalassaemia.[7,8] Observational associations have been described between excess liver iron content and several metabolic diseases such as high blood pressure, obesity, polycystic ovarian syndrome and type 2 diabetes - a condition recognised as dysmetabolic iron overload syndrome (DIOS) which aff ects up to 5-10% of the general population.

Source: Journal of Hepatology - June 17, 2019 Category: Gastroenterology Authors: Henry R. Wilman, Constantinos A. Parisinos, Naeimeh Atabaki-Pasdar, Matt Kelly, E Louise Thomas, Stefan Neubauer, IMI DIRECT Consortium Source Type: research