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Updated: Jan 21, 2026

Optimized Analysis of In Vivo and In Vitro Hepatic Steatosis
Published on: March 11, 2017
Vibrational spectroscopy-based quantification of liver steatosis
E Szafraniec1, S Tott1, E Kus2
1Faculty of Chemistry, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 2, 30-387 Krakow, Poland; Jagiellonian Centre for Experimental Therapeutics (JCET), Jagiellonian University, Bobrzynskiego 14, 30-348 Krakow, Poland.
Abstract:
The liver plays a central role in lipid metabolism, and abnormal lipid accumulation in the liver is a key feature of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. In experimental studies, quantification of liver steatosis is commonly based on lipids staining or biochemical analysis. Here, we present a spectroscopic approach for quantitative analysis of the lipid content in the freeze-dried liver. The method is based on vibrational spectroscopy (Raman and infrared) measurements applied for Partial Least Squares (PLS) regression modeling. The obtained PLS models show a good correlation of the spectroscopic data with the reference histological evaluation of steatosis based on Oil Red O (ORO)-stained images of liver cross sections. Vibrational spectroscopy with PLS-based modeling described here represents a useful approach for the fast assessment of the liver steatosis in a small sample of freeze-dried liver tissue. In conclusion, our work demonstrates the easy-to-use method that can be applied in laboratory routine as a beneficial alternative to the established ORO staining.
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