Noncoding RNAs in Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Potential Diagnosis and Prognosis Biomarkers

Figure 1

Progression of NAFLD and ncRNAs associated with each stage. The first stage of NAFLD is simple steatosis (or nonalcoholic fatty liver (NAFL)) characterized by abnormal accumulation of fat in the liver. If not reversed, simple steatosis may transform into nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which in turn can lead to liver cirrhosis and eventually to hepatocellular carcinoma. The miRNAs, lncRNA, and circRNAs known to be associated with each stage are shown in blue, green, and yellow boxes, respectively. Few interactions between the different classes of ncRNAs in NAFLD were reported and are indicated with the arrow-ended brackets.