Statins are widely used as important lipid-lowering drugs,and studies have proven the safety of statins in patients with liver diseases.In recent years,there have been more and more studies on the effects of statins in the prevention and treatment of hepatitis C,fatty liver disease,liver cirrhosis,and hepatocellular carcinoma.Studies have shown that besides the lipid-lowering effect,statins also have various other effects,including anti-inflammatory effect,immune regulation,anti-proliferation,and antioxidant effect,and they can also improve vascular endothelial function and inhibit platelet aggregation.Their roles in the prevention and treatment of liver diseases await further research.

Thymosin β4 exists in most human tissues and cells, involved in many physiological and pathological processes in the human body, such as anti-inflammation, wound healing, angiogenesis, and tumor metastasis. In recent years, thymosin β4 has been found to play an important role in the development and progression of liver diseases. This article reviews the relationship between thymosin β4 and the development and progression of liver diseases, indicating that further exploration of thymosin β4 would make it a new biomarker in diagnosing and treating liver diseases.

Mother-to-child transmission is one of the important routes of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections in China. As for the neonates whose mothers are infected with HBV, a combined injection of hepatitis B vaccine and immunoglobulin is used for vaccination, and about 10% of these neonates may experience a failure. However, as for the neonates whose mothers are infected with HCV, there are no methods for blocking mother-to-child transmission of HCV. This article introduces the development of mother-to-child transmission of HBV and HCV and related mechanisms and influencing factors, as well as the latest advances in methods for blocking, and points out that with further investigations and findings in the field of hepatitis viruses, it may be possible to block mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis viruses.

Objective:To investigate the relationship between serum ferritin (SF) and metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD).Methods:A total of 7 980 adults from physical examination in Tianjin Medical University General Hospital who met selection criterion were recruited as participants. Subjects were divided into 4 groups ( Q1- Q4) according to quartiles of SF level by gender. The incidence of MAFLD in each group in 2018-2020 were observed and cumulative incidence of MAFLD was compared between each group. Cox regression model was used to analyze the correlation between different SF levels and new-onset MAFLD, and stratified analysis was performed according to factors as gender, age, smoking status and body mass index (BMI). Results:The mean follow up period was 3.2 years, and there were 25 323 person-years of follow-up, and 1 696 subjects developed MAFLD. The incidence density of MAFLD in Q1- Q4 groups were 53.30, 56.39, 72.80 and 85.78/1 000 person-years, respectively. The incidence density of MAFLD increased along with the increase of SF levels, and the differences were statistically significant ( P values between Q3, Q4 and Q1 groups were both<0.001) with SF ≥ 162.47 μg/L (male) and 49.94 μg/L (female). The risk of MAFLD were 1.173 (95% CI: 1.093-1.258) and 1.174 (95% CI: 1.122-1.228) times higher in Q3 and Q4 group than that in Q1 group ( P<0.001). After adjusting for age, smoking status and other confounding factors, the risks of MAFLD in the Q3 and Q4 groups were 1.092 (95% CI: 1.017-1.172) and 1.084 (95% CI: 1.035-1.136) times higher in Q3 and Q4 group than that in Q1 group (all P<0.001). The stratified analyses based on gender, age, smoking status, BMI and other factors indicated that high SF levels showed significant association with MAFLD risk in those with the male sex, younger age, non-smokers and higher BMI population. Conclusions:High SF levels might increase the risk of MAFLD and this positive association might be associated with gender, age, smoking status and BMI.