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Updated: Apr 1, 2026

Optimized Analysis of In Vivo and In Vitro Hepatic Steatosis
Published on: March 11, 2017
PNPLA3 rs738409 Polymorphism Associated with Hepatic Steatosis and Advanced Fibrosis in Patients with Chronic
Jia-Hao Fan1, Ming-Que Xiang2, Qing-Ling Li3
1Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
Background/Aims:
The recognition of a correlation between patatin-like phospholipase domain containing-protein 3 (PNPLA3) rs738409 (C>G) and the severity of liver steatosis or fibrosis in chronic hepatitis C (CHC) has not reached a consensus. This meta-analysis sought to investigate with accuracy the association between the PNPLA3 rs738409 (C>G) polymorphism and liver steatosis and advanced fibrosis in CHC patients.
Methods:
We performed a comprehensive literature search from the PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases up to December 31, 2014. Crude odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated. Statistical analyses were performed using Stata 12.0 software.
Results:
The meta-analysis revealed the severity of liver fibrosis was significantly higher in CHC patients with PNPLA3 rs738409 GG in Caucasians (versus CC+CG OR, 2.29; 95% CI, 1.57 to 3.35; p<0.05) but not Asian populations. In Caucasians, liver steatosis was also more severe in CHC patients with rs738409 GG (versus CC+CG; OR, 4.33; 95% CI, 2.59 to 7.22; p<0.05). The sensitivity analysis indicated the results of this meta-analysis were stable and no publication bias was detected.
Conclusions:
PNPLA3 rs738409 (C>G) was associated with the risk of both advanced liver fibrosis and steatosis in patients with CHC, especially among Caucasian populations.
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