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Obesity and the liver: developmental perspectives
1Massachusetts General Hospital Weight Center, 50 Staniford St., 4th floor, Boston, MA 02114, USA. ahoppin@partners.org
Insights
Childhood obesity affects 15% of US youth, leading to serious health issues like fatty liver disease. Understanding metabolic programming and the liver's role is key to treating obesity and related conditions.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Endocrinology
- Hepatology
- Developmental Biology
Background:
- Childhood obesity affects 15% of US children and adolescents.
- Obesity-related complications like fatty liver disease, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes are increasingly prevalent in pediatric populations.
- Infants and children exhibit unique vulnerabilities to liver disease linked to total parenteral nutrition.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the role of the liver in metabolic programming.
- To understand the pathogenesis and treatment of pediatric fatty liver disease and obesity.
Main Methods:
- This study reviews existing literature on childhood obesity, metabolic programming, and liver disease.
- It synthesizes evidence on genetic, environmental, and developmental factors influencing metabolic health.
- Focuses on the liver's contribution to the "metabolic programming" concept.
Main Results:
- Environmental factors during critical developmental periods can permanently influence obesity predisposition.
- The liver is a central organ in the development and manifestation of metabolic disease.
- Unique pediatric susceptibilities to liver conditions associated with nutrition exist.
Conclusions:
- Understanding the liver's role in metabolic programming is crucial for addressing pediatric obesity.
- This knowledge can inform novel therapeutic strategies for fatty liver disease and obesity in children.
- Further research into "metabolic programming" is warranted for effective interventions.
Abstract:
Obesity now affects 15% of children and adolescents in the United States. Many of the complications of obesity are seen in children, including fatty liver disease, gallstones, hyperlipidemia, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes. Infants and children also have unique susceptibilities to and manifestations of liver disease caused by total parenteral nutrition. In addition to genetic and environmental influences on obesity, there is increasing evidence supporting the idea of "metabolic programming," in which environmental influences at critical periods during development have permanent effects on an individual's predisposition to obesity and metabolic disease. Understanding the role the liver plays in the development and expression of the metabolic program will provide important insight into the pathogenesis and treatment of fatty liver disease, and of obesity itself.
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