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World J Gastroenterol. Jul 14, 2014; 20(26): 8364-8376
Published online Jul 14, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i26.8364
Published online Jul 14, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i26.8364
Experimental models of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in rats
Otto Kucera, Zuzana Cervinkova, Department of Physiology, Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Medicine in Hradec Kralove, 50038 Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic
Author contributions: Kucera O and Cervinkova Z solely contributed to this paper.
Supported by Programme PRVOUK P37/02
Correspondence to: Otto Kucera, MD, PhD, Department of Physiology, Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Medicine in Hradec Kralove, Simkova 870, 50038 Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic. kucerao@lfhk.cuni.cz
Telephone: +420-49-5816186 Fax: +420-49-5518772
Received: October 29, 2013
Revised: January 15, 2014
Accepted: February 17, 2014
Published online: July 14, 2014
Processing time: 258 Days and 11.1 Hours
Revised: January 15, 2014
Accepted: February 17, 2014
Published online: July 14, 2014
Processing time: 258 Days and 11.1 Hours
Core Tip
Core tip: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease in the Western world, but its pathogenesis is still not fully understood. This paper reviews the commonly used experimental models of NAFLD in rats. We discuss nutritional, genetic and combined models of NAFLD, and we highlight their pros and cons with special emphasis on nutritional models. To date, there is not an ideal model that reflects all aspects of the complex etiopathogenesis of human NAFLD and the typical histological features of its different stages.