Circulating levels of FAM19A5 are inversely associated with subclinical atherosclerosis in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

BACKGROUND: Family with sequence similarity 19 (chemokine (C-C motif)-like) member A5 (FAM19A5) is a newly identified adipokine. There is a limited number of studies linking FAM19A5 to metabolic disorders. In the current study, we aimed to explore if FAM19A5 is associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). We also sought to determine the possibility of FAM19A5 association with subclinical atherosclerosis in NAFLD patients. METHODS: A total of 69 subjects including 37 NAFLD and 32 control subjects were included in this cross-sectional study. Plasma concentration of FAM19A5 was measured with the ELISA method. Carotid artery intima-media thickness (cIMT) was assessed by the ultrasonography. RESULTS: Plasma concentration of FAM19A5 in patients with NAFLD was significantly lower in NAFLD patients than controls. Moreover, we observed significant negative correlations between plasma level of FAM19A5 and body mass index (BMI), visceral fat, alanine amino transferase (ALT), aspartate amino transferase (AST), liver stiffness (LS), and cIMT. Following stepwise multiple linear regression analysis, ALT and cIMT were the only determinants of FAM19A5 level. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first report to describe association of circulating FAM19A5 levels with NAFLD. Our findings provide further evidence showing relation of FAM19A5 with the risk of atherosclerosis. However, more studies are necessary to unravel the contribution of lower FAM19A5 levels to the NAFLD pathogenesis and the higher risk of atherosclerosis in these patients.