title: Serum protein N-glycosylation in paediatric non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We have previously shown the potential of glycomics to distinguish patients with steatosis from patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) in an adult population. The pattern of disease in paediatric patients is distinct from adults. The objective of this study was to characterize the N -glycomic profile of children with varying degrees of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and identify potential biomarker profiles of disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  Serum protein N-glycosylation patterns of 51 paediatric NAFLD patients were assessed with deoxyribonucleic acid sequencer-assisted fluorophore-assisted capillary electrophoresis and compared with histology.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Peak 1 (NGA2F) is the most significantly elevated N-glycan in paediatric NASH patients with peak 5 (NA2) demonstrating the largest decrease. The logarithmically transformed ratio of peak 1 to peak 5 was -0.85 (standard deviation [SD] 0.22) in patients with steatosis and borderline NASH and -0.73 (SD 0.12) in NASH (P = 0.02). The biomarker correlated well with the amount of lobular inflammation with a consistent increase of marker score in ascending stage of lobular inflammation. There was also a trend in differentiating patients with significant fibrosis ≥F2; -0.74 (SD 0.13) from patients with no/minimal fibrosis <F2; -0.86 (SD 0.24), P = 0.06. Analysis of the N-glycans on immunoglobulin G confirmed the undergalactosylation status typical for chronic inflammatory conditions.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study is the first glycomic analysis performed in a paediatric NAFLD population. In agreement with the results obtained in adults, B cells play a dominant role in the N-glycan alterations of paediatric NASH patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hepatology and Gastroenterology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium. bram.blomme@ugent.be
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Blomme
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fitzpatrick
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Quaglia
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: De Bruyne
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dhawan
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Van Vlierberghe
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001706:Biopsy; D001798:Blood Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005234:Fatty Liver / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D054794:Glycomics / Q000379:methods*; D006031:Glycosylation; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D065626:Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D001798:Blood Proteins; D007074:Immunoglobulin G