Abstract: Objective The aim of this study was to explore changes of serum maresin-1, omentin-1 and microRNA-125b (miR-125b) levels, and their correlation to liver inflammation and liver fibrosis (LF) in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Methods A total of 103 patients with NAFLD and 67 healthy individuals were enrolled in our hospital between January and June 2024, serum maresin-1 and omentin-1 levels were detected by ELISA, and miR-125b level was assayed by RT-PCR. All patients with NAFLD underwent liver biopsy, and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and LF were diagnosed based on NAFLD activity scores (NAS). The diagnostic efficacy of serum maresin-1, omentin-1 and miR-125b levels for LF was evaluated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Results Of 103 patients with NAFLD, liver histo-pathological examination proved liver cirrhosis (LC) in 15 cases, NASH in 57 cases (including significantLF in 36 cases and mild LF in 21 cases), and simple fatty liver (SFL) in 31 cases; serum maresin-1, omentin-1 and miR-125b levels in cirrhosis group were (43.7±5.2) pg/mL, (1.2±0.3) ng/mL and (0.6±0.1), all significantly lower than [(59.3±5.8) pg/mL, (2.4±0.5) ng/mL and (1.0±0.3), P<0.05]in NASH group, or [(67.2±6.6) pg/mL, (3.2±0.7) ng/mL and (1.6±0.4), P<0.05] in SFL group or [(78.5±7.3) pg/mL, (4.3±0.9) ng/mL and (2.3±0.5) ng/ml, respectively, P<0.05] in control group; serum maresin-1, omentin-1 and miR-125b levels in NASH patients with significant LF were (56.9±5.6) pg/mL, (2.1±0.6) ng/mL and (0.8±0.2), all significantly lower than [(63.4±5.3) pg/mL, (2.9±0.8) ng/mL and (1.3±0.3), respectively, P<0.05] in those with mild LF; ROC analysis showed that area under the curve (ACU) of serum maresin-1, omentin-1 and miR-125b level combination in the diagnosis of NASH with significant LF was 0.912, with sensitivity of 97.2% and specificity of 71.4%, much superior to any parameter did alone (P<0.05). Conclusion Serum maresin-1, omentin-1 and miR-125b levels in patients with NAFLD reduce, and very low of them might indicate the existence of NASH and LF, which warrants further interventions.

Key words: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, Maresin-1, Omentin-1, MicroRNA-125b, Diagnosis