One-third of the U.S. population suffers from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). NAFLD is caused by diabetes and obesity, and is becoming more common. Although many people have this disease, the change in how the liver handles drugs and compounds in the body has not been studied. The purpose of this study is to investigate how advanced NAFLD changes the ability of the liver to handle both endogenous and exogenous compounds.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Purpose
DIAGNOSTIC
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
22
A high fat breakfast will be administered to induce gall bladder emptying.
Five milligrams of intravenous morphine will be administered.
North Carolina Clinical and Translational Research Center
Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States
Pharmacokinetic profile of morphine and its hepatically derived metabolites.
Morphine will be administered as a 5-min IV infusion. Pharmacokinetic profiles of morphine and morphine metabolites will be quantified in the serum over the 8-hour sampling period. Non-compartmental analysis will be performed using Pharsight Phoenix software, comparing the following parameters between healthy subjects and patients with advanced NAFLD. The maximal concentration, time of maximal concentration, elimination half-life, area under the curve, and systemic and renal clearances will be calculated for both morphine and the glucuronide metabolites. Volume of distribution and metabolic clearance will be calculated for morphine.
Time frame: 8 hours post dose
Bile acid profile
The bile acid profile in healthy and diseased subjects will be assessed following an 8 hour fast and every 30 min for 2 hours following a high fat breakfast. At each of the 5 time points, serum concentrations of total and selected individual bile acid species will be quantified and compared between healthy subjects and patients with advanced NAFLD. Comparison of the bile acid profile, comprised of all selected bile acids, between subjects and patients will pose as the primary endpoint for this outcome.
Time frame: Pre- and postprandially
FibroScan with Controlled Attenuation Parameter (CAP) Software
FibroScan is more sensitive method to identify less severe scarring of liver tissue when compared to liver ultrasound and contrary to liver biopsy, it is not invasive. In this study, Fibroscan will be used to assess the extent of liver fibrosis in both healthy volunteers and patients diagnosed with NAFLD and the CAP software will be used to estimate fat liver content. These findings will be correlated with changes in morphine disposition and bile acid profile observed in the study participants as described above.
Time frame: No preparation (fasting) required-consumption of large meals prior to the Fibroscan procedure is not advised
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