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Aim: Macrovesicular steatosis around the central vein (zone 3) is one of the pathological features of non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease or steatohepatitis (NAFLD/NASH). The aim of this study is to elucidate precisely the association between the area of lipid droplets (LDs) and the plasma metabolic parameters in patients with NAFLD/NASH. Methods: Eighty patients with NAFLD/NASH diagnosed by needle biopsy were enrolled. The LDs around zone 3 were counted automatically by image processing software, the total area of LDs (TLDs), the maximum area of LDs (MAXLDs), the average area of LDs (AVELDs) and the heterogeneity by the coefficient of variation (CV [%]) were quantified. The correlations between these values and plasma metabolic parameters were analyzed. We evaluated the association between branched chain amino acids (BCAAs) and the heterogeneity of LDs in hepatocytes in vitro and in vivo. Results: The MAXLDs was significantly correlated with more metabolic parameters than AVELDs and TLDs. The level of BCAAs was independently associated with the CV among the metabolic parameters. In early stage NAFLD, aspartate and alanine aminotransferase were significantly higher in the high CV group than in the low CV group. The high concentration of BCAAs increased the CV of LDs in hepatocytes accompanied by the expression of phosphor‐p70 S6 kinase and sterol regulatory element‐binding protein 1 in vitro. A high BCAA diet induced high heterogeneity of LDs around zone 3 in ob/ob mice. Conclusions: The levels of BCAAs were associated with the LD heterogeneity of hepatocytes around zone 3 in patients with NAFLD/NASH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background & Aims: Excessive trans-fatty acids (TFA) consumption has been thought to be a risk factor mainly for coronary artery diseases while less attention has been paid to liver disease. We aimed to clarify the impact of TFA-rich oil consumption on the hepatic pathophysiology compared to natural oil. Methods: Mice were fed either a low-fat (LF) or high-fat (HF) diet made of either natural oil as control (LF-C or HF-C) or partially hydrogenated oil, TFA-rich oil (LF-T or HF-T) for 24weeks. We evaluated the liver and body weight, serological features, liver lipid content and composition, liver histology and hepatic lipid metabolism-related gene expression profile. In addition, primary cultures of mice Kupffer cells (KCs) were evaluated for cytokine secretion and phagocytotic ability after incubation in cis- or trans-fatty acid-containing medium. Results: The HF-T-fed mice showed significant increases of the liver and body weights, plasma alanine-aminotransferase, free fatty acid and hepatic triglyceride content compared to the HF-C group, whereas the LF-T group did not differ from the LF-C group. HF-T-fed mice developed severe steatosis, along with increased lipogenic gene expression and hepatic TFA accumulation. KCs showed increased tumor necrosis factor secretion and attenuated phagocytotic ability in the TFA-containing medium compared to its cis-isomer. Conclusions: Excessive consumption of the TFA-rich oil up-regulated the lipogenic gene expression along with marked hepatic lipid accumulation. TFA might be pathogenic through causing severe steatosis and modulating the function of KCs. The quantity and composition of dietary lipids could be responsible for the pathogenesis of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]