Review
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World J Gastroenterol. Sep 7, 2013; 19(33): 5402-5420
Published online Sep 7, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i33.5402
What does irritable bowel syndrome share with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease?
Antonella Scalera, Matteo Nicola Dario Di Minno, Giovanni Tarantino
Antonella Scalera, Matteo Nicola Dario Di Minno, Giovanni Tarantino, Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Federico II University Medical School of Naples, 80131 Naples, Italy
Giovanni Tarantino, INT “Fondazione Pascale” - Cancer Research Center of Mercogliano, 83013 Mercogliano (Av), Italy
Author contributions: Tarantino G designed research and analyzed literature data; Di Minno MND critically reviewed the manuscript; Scalera A wrote the paper.
Correspondence to: Giovanni Tarantino, MD, Professor, Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Federico II University Medical School of Naples, Via Sergio Pansini, 5, 80131 Naples, Italy. tarantin@unina.it
Telephone: +39-81-7462024 Fax: +39-81-5466152
Received: February 25, 2013
Revised: June 5, 2013
Accepted: July 23, 2013
Published online: September 7, 2013
Processing time: 195 Days and 10.4 Hours
Core Tip

Core tip: The link between non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) should be carefully evaluated in future research, representing an intriguing field of investigation. A better understanding of the role of systemic inflammation and activation of the immune system may be necessary to clarify obscure points of NAFLD and IBS pathogenesis, and therefore it can be helpful in the development of new therapies.