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Featured MASLD/MASH Educators

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Elizabeth Alqueza

PA-C

Elizabeth Alqueza, PA-C is a board certified Physician Associate at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in Boston, Massachusetts. She graduated from the University of Florida in 2004 with a Master of Physician Assistant Studies degree and subsequently completed the AASLD NP/PA Clinical Hepatology Fellowship. Elizabeth has worked in a variety of inpatient and outpatient settings with a strong commitment to patient care. Currently working at BIDMC Liver Center, Elizabeth has 5 years of dedicated experience in Hepatology. Her practice focuses primarily on steatotic liver disease, including Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease (MASLD) and Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis (MASH). Elizabeth is an active member of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Advanced Practice Providers.

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Michelle Barnett

PA-C, MPAS, DFAAPA

Michelle Barnett is a highly experienced physician assistant specializing in patient-focused and evidence-based hepatology at Peak Gastroenterology Associates in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The most rewarding part of her position includes educating patients and collaborating with other GI advanced practice providers to enhance care for the growing MASLD/MASH population. She is now a subinvestigtor for hepatology clinical trials with Peak in Colorado Springs. With over 30 years in the GI and liver communities, she has held leadership roles, including serving as President of the Colorado Academy of Physician Assistants (CAPA) and receiving CAPA's Physician Assistant of the Year award. She is a national speaker and has given lectures for the AAPA, GHAPP and AANP. A graduate of Wichita State University and the University of Nebraska, Michelle has been recognized with the DFAAPA distinction and honors such as the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation's IBD internship and the International Foundation for Gastrointestinal Disorders Ally Award. Passionate about holistic care, she incorporates lifestyle strategies like nutrition, yoga, and meditation into her practice. Outside of work, Michelle enjoys hiking, travel, musical theater, and supporting her favorite Colorado sports teams.

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Sherona Bau

NP

Sherona Bau graduated from University of California, Los Angeles in 2008, with Master of Science in Nursing dual program specialized in Acute Care Nurse Practitioner and Clinical Nurse Specialist. In 2010, she has joined UCLA Pfleger Liver Institute and Asian Liver Cancer Center working as an outpatient Nurse Practitioner specializing in liver diseases including viral hepatitis, hepatobiliary diseases, alcohol related liver diseases, Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease/Steatohepatitis, autoimmune liver diseases, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Since 2016, she has been a guest lecturer at UCLA School of Nursing for Master Entry Clinical Nurse (MECN) and MSN Adult/Gero Acute Care program. She is also a preceptor for Adult/Gero Acute Care Program. She participated in Hepatitis C Screening in the Community Churches to promote awareness of hepatitis C and the importance of treatment of hepatitis C. She also participates in Patient Symposium at UCLA to give a lecture to update care of the liver transplant patients. She is also a faculty of Gastroenterology Hepatology Advanced Practice Provider (GHAPP) since 2018 and a speaker for both GHAPP National meeting and Regional GHAPP in Los Angeles. Since 2013, she has published total 14 research papers and case report including the most recent three are Recommendations for the Management of MASH by Advanced Practice Providers in the US, Clinicians and Patients Confront Practical Issues in Wilson Disease, and Overview of chronic Hepatitis B management.

MASLD/MASH Learning Center

Latest News & Blogs

County-Level Factors and Preventable Premature Liver Mortality in Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease

October 2025

CONCLUSION: In this ecological cross-sectional study of US counties, most MASLD-PLM was preventable, with the highest burdens in rural, socioeconomically disadvantaged, and medically underserved areas. Multiple upstream community-level factors were associated with proportion of preventable MASLD-PLM and may warrant further evaluation in future studies.

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Safety and efficacy of 24 weeks of pemvidutide in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: A randomized, controlled clinical trial

October 2025

CONCLUSIONS: In individuals with MASLD, 24 weeks of pemvidutide treatment resulted in significant reductions in liver fat content and body weight that further improved upon the effects observed at 12 weeks.

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Pharmacotherapy in metabolic-dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: an updated review of the past, present and a promising future

October 2025

Metabolic-dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) or metabolic-dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) has been recognised as one of the most important aetiologies of chronic liver disease and also a marker of high risk for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) in patients with or without diabetes. The presence of diabetes accelerates the progression of MASLD. The pathogenesis of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) is complex and the...

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Current and Future Implications of Weight Loss Drugs on Liver Disease

October 2025

The disease burden of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and its progressive form, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), represents an unmet need for pharmacotherapies to halt progression or reverse fibrosis. Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP1-RAs) are the first to be approved for chronic obesity management and diabetes to be examined in individuals with MASLD/MASH. Successful phase 2 and phase 3 randomized control trials have shown...

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Novel thieno[2,3-b]pyridine derivatives protect islet through DRAK2 kinase inhibition

October 2025

DRAK2 (STK17B), a serine/threonine kinase, plays a critical role in apoptosis and has been implicated in metabolic diseases, including type 2 diabetes (T2D) and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH). Previous studies have demonstrated DRAK2's roles in pancreatic β cell dysfunction and mitochondrial impairment. This study is dedicated to the development of novel DRAK2 inhibitors aimed at preserving β cell function. Through comprehensive structure-activity relationship (SAR)...

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A Phase 2a Trial of Myeloperoxidase Inhibitor Mitiperstat in Non-Cirrhotic Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis

October 2025

CONCLUSION: This study does not provide proof of concept that mitiperstat 5 mg exerts an anti-inflammatory/anti-fibrotic effect in MASH.

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Relationship between MASLD and women's health: A review

October 2025

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD; formerly non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, NAFLD) is a common chronic liver disease strongly linked to obesity, metabolic syndrome (MetS), and type 2 diabetes. It starts as benign hepatic steatosis, but may progress to severe fibrosis, cirrhosis, or hepatocellular carcinoma. Today, MASLD represents one of the leading indications for liver transplantation. This review summarizes current knowledge on MASLD, including its...

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From steatosis to cirrhosis: the role of obesity in the progression of liver disease

October 2025

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), the most common subtype of steatotic liver disease (SLD), affects approximately 38% of the global adult population and is strongly linked to obesity, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Projections estimate its prevalence may exceed 55% by 2040. Obesity plays a central role in the progression from simple steatosis to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), fibrosis, cirrhosis, and...

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Association between HOMA-IR and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis in U.S. adults with MASLD

October 2025

CONCLUSION: Monitoring HOMA-IR is vital for early MASH risk detection and intervention. Targeting insulin resistance and BMI may reduce MASH risk and severity, highlighting the need for integrated therapeutic strategies.

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CircSMEK1 Suppresses HCC via the hnRNPK-IGF2-AKT Axis: A Diagnostic Biomarker and Therapeutic Target

October 2025

The mechanism underlying metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is elusive, and whether circRNA can serve as biomarker or therapeutic target for MASH/HCC needs to be systematically explored. Integrative transcriptomic analysis of circRNA from MASH and HCC were performed. Multi-cohort analyses of serum and tissues from MASH and HCC patients (n = 206) were conducted. Mechanisms are explored via RNA-protein interaction assays, CRISPR-mediated...

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Intranuclear paraspeckle-circular RNA TACC3 assembly forms RNA-DNA hybrids to facilitate MASH-related hepatocellular carcinoma growth in an m(6)A-dependent manner

October 2025

CONCLUSIONS: The m⁶A modification-dependent circTACC3-paraspeckle assembly results in the formation of R loops at DSB foci, leading to chromatin remodeling and the activation of genes involved in MASH-related HCC malignant progression. This process identifies potential therapeutic targets.

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Global performance of non-invasive tests in MASLD: Insights from the G-MASLD study

October 2025

CONCLUSION: Diagnostic performance of common non-invasive tests for fibrosis in MASLD varies across the world. In the large multinational G-MASLD sample, the most accurate NITs were Agile-3+ and Agile-4 composite scores.

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Bedside FibroScan as a Point-of-care Tool for Quantification for Cirrhosis: A Single-center Prospective Observational Study from Western India

October 2025

CONCLUSION: Bedside FibroScan® offers a highly accurate, rapid, and noninvasive method for quantifying liver fibrosis and cirrhosis in clinical practice. Its integration into routine care could substantially improve management for patients at risk of liver disease.

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Real-world work productivity is impaired in people with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease in the USA

October 2025

CONCLUSIONS: Activity impairment was greater in participants with high-risk MASH, whereas overall work impairment was comparable, almost 20%, in low- and high-risk MASH. Non-specific symptoms of fatigue, sleep disturbance, and general weakness associated with MASH and other conditions predicted work impact in low-risk MASH. Thus, early detection and management of MASH could ameliorate work impairment.

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Diet and Lifestyle Interventions in Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Fatty Liver Disease: A Comprehensive Review

October 2025

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and its progressive form, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), have become the leading causes of chronic liver disease worldwide, with increasing rates of cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma, and cardiovascular complications. Pathogenesis involves a complex interplay of dietary excess, sedentary lifestyle, insulin resistance, adipose tissue dysfunction, and alterations in the gut microbiome, which collectively...

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CES1 Increases Hepatic Triacylglycerol Synthesis Through Activation of PPARγ, LXR and SREBP1c

October 2025

Increased hepatic triacylglycerol (TG) storage in lipid droplets (LDs) is a hallmark of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH). Human carboxylesterase 1 (CES1) regulates TG storage and secretion in hepatocytes, but the mechanism remains to be elucidated. We performed studies in rat hepatoma McArdle RH7777 cells stably transfected with CES1 cDNA and in Ces1d-deficient mice using a variety of biochemical,...

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Myeloid-Specific STAT3 Deletion Aggravates Liver Fibrosis in Mice Fed a Methionine- and Choline-Deficient Diet via Upregulation of Hepatocyte-Derived Lipocalin-2

October 2025

The signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) in myeloid cells suppresses proinflammatory cytokine production and reduces collagen deposition. However, its role in methionine- and choline-deficient (MCD) diet-fed mice remains unclear. This study investigates the effects of myeloid-specific STAT3 deficiency on hepatic inflammation and fibrosis in MCD diet-fed mice. Myeloid-specific STAT3 knockout (mSTAT3KO) mice were fed the MCD diet for four weeks to induce metabolic...

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Coptidis rhizoma ameliorates type 2 diabetes mellitus-related metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis by downregulating the IL-17RA/NF-kappaB signaling pathway

October 2025

CONCLUSION: Coptidis rhizoma ameliorates pathological phenotypes in T2DM-related MASH by inhibiting the IL-17RA/NF-κB signaling pathway, and its active metabolite epiberberine is involved in mediating these protective effects.

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Arctigenin Prevents Metabolic Dysfunction-associated Steatohepatitis by Inhibiting NLRP3/GSDMD-N Axis in Macrophages

October 2025

CONCLUSIONS: ATG may inhibit the inflammatory cascade primarily by targeting macrophage NLRP3 inflammasomes, thereby preventing the progression of MASH.

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Discovery of the First-In-Class HSD17B13/PPAR Multitarget Modulators for the Treatment of Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis

October 2025

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) is a complex disease driven by multiple metabolic and inflammatory pathways. HSD17B13 is a potential therapeutic target for MASH, and PPAR regulates multiple pathological mechanisms related to MASH. Based on their important roles, we hypothesize that the HSD17B13/PPAR multitarget modulator may have a better effect in targeting multiple pathological mechanisms of MASH. In this study, a structure-based hybrid strategy was performed by...

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