{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,13]],"date-time":"2026-07-13T18:28:21Z","timestamp":1783967301789,"version":"3.55.0"},"reference-count":19,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,23]],"date-time":"2025-12-23T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1766448000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001691","name":"JSPS Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["JP24K02714"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["JP24K02714"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001691","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nutrients"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) has been linked to dietary fat quality and polyunsaturated fatty-acid metabolism. We evaluated whether dietary n-6 fatty-acid intake, serum dihomo-\u03b3-linolenic acid (DGLA), and desaturase-based indices for \u03945-desaturase (D5D) and \u03946-desaturase (D6D) are associated with MASLD. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis within the HOZUGAWA health checkup cohort in Japan (n = 289; 100 MASLD, 189 non-MASLD). Participants underwent hepatic ultrasonography, dietary assessment using the Brief Self-Administered Diet History Questionnaire, and fasting serum metabolomics by gas chromatography\u2013mass spectrometry with solid-phase dehydration derivatization. Enzyme indices were defined as the D5D index = arachidonic acid\/DGLA and the D6D proxy index = DGLA\/linoleic acid (hereafter referred to as the D6D index) because \u03b3-linolenic acid was not measured. Natural-log-transformed D5D index, D6D index, DGLA, and total dietary n-6 fatty-acid intake were entered into multivariable logistic regression models for MASLD adjusted for age, sex, BMI, alcohol intake, and total energy. Results: Compared with non-MASLD, MASLD showed higher serum DGLA, lower D5D index, and higher D6D index (all p \u2264 0.005), with no between-group differences in total energy intake, linoleic acid, total polyunsaturated fatty acids, or total dietary n-6 fatty-acid intake. Higher ln D5D was independently associated with lower odds of MASLD (OR 0.62, 95% CI 0.42\u20130.86), whereas higher ln D6D index (OR 1.42, 95% CI 1.04\u20131.95) and ln DGLA (OR 1.62, 95% CI 1.13\u20132.43) were each positively associated. Total dietary n-6 fatty-acid intake was not independently associated with MASLD. Conclusions: In this Japanese health examination cohort, an imbalance in estimated desaturase activities\u2014lower D5D index and higher D6D index\u2014together with higher serum DGLA was independently associated with MASLD, whereas n-6 intake showed no group difference or independent association. These findings suggest that enzyme-linked endogenous n-6 metabolic status may be more closely related to the MASLD phenotype than intake quantity alone.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nu18010057","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,24]],"date-time":"2025-12-24T11:22:14Z","timestamp":1766575334000},"page":"57","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Dihomo-\u03b3-Linolenic Acid Elevation with Desaturase Imbalance in Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease in a Japanese Health Checkups Cohort: HOZUGAWA Study, a Multi-Omic, Diet Adjusted Analysis"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"18","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-2984-5094","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sayaka","family":"Kawai","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1707-970X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hiroshi","family":"Okada","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2904-4640","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hideto","family":"Okamoto","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ren","family":"Yashiki","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Megumi","family":"Minamida","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Natsuko","family":"Shinagawa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2545-5410","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Takahiro","family":"Ichikawa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0001-5617-7978","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Shinta","family":"Yamamoto","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3263-9469","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Noriyuki","family":"Kitagawa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Diabetology, Kameoka Municipal Hospital, Kyoto 621-8585, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8794-0550","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Yoshitaka","family":"Hashimoto","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Diabetes and Endocrinology, Matsushita Memorial Hospital, Moriguchi 570-8540, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ryoichi","family":"Sasano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"AiSTI SCIENCE Co., Ltd., Wakayama 640-8390, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6805-6428","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Kunimasa","family":"Yagi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Internal Medicine, Kanazawa Medical University Hospital, 1-1 Daigaku, Uchinada-machi 920-0293, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8651-4445","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Masahide","family":"Hamaguchi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0903-1797","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Michiaki","family":"Fukui","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,23]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1542","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jhep.2023.06.003","article-title":"A Multisociety Delphi Consensus Statement on New Fatty Liver Disease Nomenclature","volume":"79","author":"Rinella","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. 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