NASH Drug Development: Seeing the Light at the End of the Tunnel?
Yong Q. Chen
Abstract
Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is a chronic liver disease affecting a large population worldwide. No clinically approved drugs are available. In this minireview, we discuss the heterogeneous nature of NASH and lack of consensus in outcome measures among clinical trials. We summarize NASH therapeutic targets and candidate drugs. We compare the efficacy of 33 published clinical trials that evaluated noninvasive biomarkers and liver biopsy. Currently, phase II trial results of fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) and phase III trial results of resmetirom and pioglitazone are encouraging.
Topics & Concepts
MedicinePioglitazoneNonalcoholic steatohepatitisClinical trialDrug developmentIntensive care medicineDrugChronic liver diseasePopulationClinical PracticeNonalcoholic fatty liver diseaseInternal medicineDiseasePharmacologyDiabetes mellitusFatty liverPhysical therapyEndocrinologyType 2 diabetesCirrhosisEnvironmental healthFibroblast Growth Factor ResearchLiver Disease Diagnosis and TreatmentKruppel-like factors research