Is there a role for adaptive immunity in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis?

Abstract

The growing diffusion of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a consequence of the worldwide increase in the prevalence of obesity. Oxidative stress is widely recognized to play a pivotal role in NAFLD evolution to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Here we review recent evidence suggesting that oxidative stress-derived antigens originating within fatty livers stimulate both humoral and cellular adaptive immune responses and the possible mechanisms involved in sustaining hepatic inflammation in NASH.