Serum Level of Interleukin-11 Is Associated with the Severity of Hepatic Fibrosis in Adults with Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease

Abstract

The rising prevalence of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) poses a critical public health challenge, yet current diagnostic and therapeutic approaches remain limited. Interleukin-11 (IL-11) is a pro-inflammatory cytokine expressed by various cell types in the liver. Although preclinical studies have revealed the pro-fibrotic role of IL-11 in mouse models, the clinical relevance between serum IL-11 and human MASLD remains unclear. This cross-sectional study enrolled 375 patients with MASLD from the outpatient department to explore the relationship between the serum level of IL-11 and the indicators of MASLD in adults with MASLD. Demographic characteristics, clinical parameters, laboratory biomarkers, FibroScan results, and serum IL-11 concentrations were prospectively collected in patients with MASLD for further analysis. As a result, the liver stiffness measurement values were significantly elevated in patients with detectable serum IL-11 compared to the IL-11-undetectable group, while the controlled attenuation parameter values between the groups showed no significant difference. It was also illustrated by logistic regression models that serum IL-11 is an independent predictor of advanced hepatic fibrosis. Our findings provide the references for further developing IL-11 as a potential evaluative biomarker and therapeutic target of MASLD.