Recent advances of sterile inflammation and inter-organ cross-talk in alcoholic liver disease

Abstract

Alcoholic liver disease: cross-talk with other organs Therapies preventing the distribution of damage-associated molecules from other organs to the liver could help tackle alcoholic liver disease (ALD). Over time, metabolites from excessive alcohol consumption induce oxidative stress, damaging liver cells. Injured hepatocytes release molecules known as damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), including proteins, RNA, and metabolites, which disperse within the liver and other organs and trigger chronic inflammation. Won-Il Jeong and Young-Ri Shim at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology in Daejeon reviewed understanding of DAMPs to identify possible therapeutic targets for ALD. DAMPs are carried between cells by extracellular vesicles, particles released during cellular communication. Alcohol-induced DAMPs in other organs, such as the gut, can deliver to the liver, and it influences ALD progression. The more-detailed cross-talk between the liver and other organs in ALD requires further investigation.