Modulation of metabolic, inflammatory and fibrotic pathways by semaglutide in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis

Abstract

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) is a chronic liver disease strongly associated with cardiometabolic risk factors. Semaglutide, a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist, improves liver histology in MASH, but the underlying signals and pathways driving semaglutide-induced MASH resolution are not well understood. Here we show that, in two preclinical MASH models, semaglutide improved histological markers of fibrosis and inflammation and reduced hepatic expression of fibrosis-related and inflammation-related gene pathways. Aptamer-based proteomic analyses of serum samples from patients with MASH in a clinical trial identified 72 proteins significantly associated with MASH resolution and semaglutide treatment, with most related to metabolism and several implicated in fibrosis and inflammation. An independent real-world cohort verified the pathophysiological relevance of this signature, showing that the same 72 proteins are differentially expressed in patients with MASH relative to healthy individuals. Taken together, these data suggest that semaglutide may revert the circulating proteome associated with MASH to the proteomic pattern observed in healthy individuals.