Lars Johansson (CSO at Antaros Medical) and Paul Hockings (Senior Director, MR Imaging at Antaros Medical) are co-authors of a new publication investigating treatment effects of glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonism in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD; previously called non-alcoholic fatty liver disease or NAFLD) patients using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The study, sponsored by Novo Nordisk, investigated changes in liver fat and liver stiffness using non-invasive imaging methods MRI proton density fat fraction (PDFF) and magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) at 6, 12 and 18 months from baseline.
The screening results from this trial have already been published, looking at the clinical characteristics of screened subjects in relation to the extent of fibrosis assessed using MRE. You can find the publications from both the screening data and full-length study results below.
Full-length study publication
Title: Randomised clinical trial: Semaglutide versus placebo reduced liver steatosis but not liver stiffness in subjects with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease assessed by magnetic resonance imaging
Authors: Flint A, Andersen G, Hockings P, Johansson L, Morsing A, Sundby Palle M, Vogl T, Loomba R, Plum-Mörschel L.
Screening data publication
Title: Clinical Characteristics of a Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Population Across the Fibrosis Spectrum Measured by Magnetic Resonance Elastography: Analysis of Screening Data
Authors: Andersen G, Plum-Mörschel L, Hockings P D, Morsing A, Palle M S, Svolgaard O & Flint A
About MASLD
Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD; previously called non-alcoholic fatty liver disease or NAFLD) affects around 25-30% of the adult population worldwide. The more advanced form of the disease, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH; previously called non-alcoholic steatohepatitis or NASH), is characterised by inflammation and fibrosis and is associated with an increased risk of liver-related mortality. It is crucial to understand disease progression and severity for both clinical management and clinical research. Today, liver biopsy is used for disease stratification but is limited by cost and risks. Imaging biomarkers are emerging as key non-invasive alternatives to assess different aspects of the disease including hepatic steatosis, inflammation, liver fibrosis and cirrhosis as well as down-stream clinical manifestations.