Dysglycemia and liver lipid content determine the relationship of insulin resistance with hepatic OXPHOS capacity in obesity

Highlights•Glycemia and liver lipid content jointly affect the adaptation of hepatic oxidative capacity to insulin resistance•Prediabetes affects hepatic insulin signaling, mitochondrial dynamics and relates to fibrosis prevalence•Fasting plasma glucose predicts the decline of hepatic mitochondrial plasticity more robustly than 2-hour OGTT glucoseAbstractBackground & AimsHepatic mitochondrial respiration is higher in steatosis, but lower in overt type 2 diabetes. We hypothesized that hepatic OXPHOS capacity increases with a greater degree of insulin resistance in obesity, independent of other metabolic diseases.MethodsWe analysed 65 humans without diabetes (BMI 50±7 kg/m2, HbA1c 5.5±0.4%) undergoing bariatric surgery. MASLD stages were assessed by histology, whole-body insulin sensitivity (PREDIcted-M index) by oral glucose tolerance tests, and maximal ADP-stimulated mitochondrial OXPHOS capacity by high-resolution respirometry of liver samples.ResultsPrediabetes was present in 30 participants, and MASLD in 46 participants. Thereof, 25 had metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), and seven had F2-F3 fibrosis. While simple regression did not detect an association of insulin sensitivity with hepatic OXPHOS capacity, interaction analyses revealed that the regression coefficient of OXPHOS capacity depended on fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and liver lipid content. Interestingly, the respective slopes were negative for FPG ≤100 mg/dl, but positive for FPG >100 mg/dl. Liver lipid content displayed similar behavior, with a threshold value of 24%. Post-challenge glycemia affected the association between insulin sensitivity and OXPHOS capacity normalized for citrate synthase activity. Presence of prediabetes affected hepatic insulin signaling, mitochondrial dynamics and fibrosis prevalence, while the presence of MASLD related to higher biomarkers of hepatic inflammation, cell damage and lipid peroxidation in people with normal glucose tolerance.ConclusionsRising liver lipid contents and plasma glucose concentrations, even in the non-diabetic range, are associated with a progressive decline of hepatic mitochondrial adaptation in people with obesity and insulin resistance.ClinTrials.gov identifierNCT01477957Graphical abstract