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This article examines the relationship between changes in liver enzymes and hepatic fat and their potential connection to cardiovascular disease (CVD). The study involved 900 healthy subjects, with 79 individuals showing slightly elevated alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels after three years. The results indicated that elevated ALT levels were associated with higher levels of other CVD risk indicators, such as aspartate aminotransferase (AST), gamma-glutamyltransferase (¿-GT), high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2) activity, oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL), urinary 8-epi-prostaglandin F2¿ (8-epi-PGF2¿), and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (ba-PWV). The study suggests that increased Lp-PLA2 activity and other CVD risk factors may contribute to chronic low-grade inflammation. The study also found that elevated liver enzymes and increased Lp-PLA2 activity contribute to systemic inflammation in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and that both ALT levels and Lp-PLA2 activity could serve as valuable non-invasive markers for detecting the advanced status of NAFLD. However, the study had limitations in terms of sample size and correlation analysis, and further research is needed to confirm these findings. [Extracted from the article]

Background/Aim: Elevation in liver enzymes and hepatic fat may indicate a higher susceptibility to cardiovascular disease (CVD). This research sought to find anthropometric/biochemical variables significantly related to the alanine aminotransferase (ALT) increase in healthy populations. Methods: Nine hundred healthy subjects were included in a 3-year prospective cohort study. The initial screening revealed that 538 were found to be nondiabetic (fasting glucose < 126 mg/dL) and had normal ALT levels. Among them, 79 individuals with slightly elevated ALT levels after three years were assigned to the elevated ALT group. Of the remaining 459 participants, 241 subjects matched to the increased ALT group were the control group. Results: After three years of follow-up, individuals with elevated ALT showed notably higher aspartate aminotransferase (AST), ALT, gamma-glutamyl-transferase (g-GT), high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2 ) activity, oxidised low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL), urinary 8-epi-prostaglandin F2a (8-epi-PGF2a) levels and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (ba-PWV) in comparison to the control group. Changes (D) in ALT showed a positive correlation with D AST, D gammaGT, D hs-CRP, D Lp-PLA2 activity, D ox-LDL, D urinary 8-epi-PGF2a and D ba-PWV. Furthermore, a direct positive link was observed between the D Lp-PLA2 activity and D AST, D ox-LDL and D ba-PWV. Conclusion: Increased Lp-PLA2 activity and other CVD risk indicators were observed to have a pronounced association with elevated ALT levels. This mild ALT elevation could potentially contribute to chronic low-grade inflammation.