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World J Gastroenterol. Dec 7, 2014; 20(45): 16841-16857
Published online Dec 7, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i45.16841
Focus on emerging drugs for the treatment of patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
Alessandro Federico, Claudio Zulli, Ilario de Sio, Anna Del Prete, Marcello Dallio, Mario Masarone, Carmela Loguercio
Alessandro Federico, Claudio Zulli, Ilario de Sio, Anna Del Prete, Marcello Dallio, Carmela Loguercio, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine F. Magrassi e A. Lanzara, Hepatogastroenterology Division, Interuniversity Research Centre on Food, Nutrition and the Gastrointestinal Tract (CIRANAD) - Second University of Naples, 80131 Naples, Italy
Mario Masarone, Department of Internal Medicine and Hepatology, University of Salerno, 84121 Salerno, Italy
Author contributions: Federico A, Zulli C, de Sio I, Del Prete A, Dallio M and Masarone M have made substantial contributions to acquisition, analysis and interpretation of data; They were involved in drafting the manuscript and have given final approval of the version to be published; Loguercio C has made substantial contributions to the drafting of the article and critical revisions of the article and also given final approval of the version to be published.
Correspondence to: Alessandro Federico, MD, PhD, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine F. Magrassi e A. Lanzara, Hepatogastroenterology Division, Interuniversity Research Centre on Food, Nutrition and the Gastrointestinal Tract (CIRANAD) - Second University of Naples, Via Pansini 5, 80131 Naples, Italy. alessandro.federico@unina2.it
Telephone: +39-815-666723 Fax: +39-815-666714
Received: May 11, 2014
Revised: July 16, 2014
Accepted: September 5, 2014
Published online: December 7, 2014
Processing time: 213 Days and 11.7 Hours
Core Tip

Core tip: At the moment, there is no standardized treatment for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) or non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH); the first-line approach remains lifestyle changes (diet and physical exercise). The high risk of complications associated with NAFLD/NASH, such as cardiovascular diseases and the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma, make it necessary to apply appropriate medications to stop the progression of the disease. Considering the pathogenetic pathways known today, several therapeutic targets have been proposed, including some that look very promising; still, innovative pharmacological strategies are absolutely needed. Below, we report the real efficacies of fatty liver therapies and the most recent studies investigating this field.