The goal of this research was to determine if the intake of large amounts of high-fat/high-fructose over a period of time would influence the gut microbiota and promote NAFLD in a novel animal model of NAFLD, the Iberian pig. In this study, we compared the impact of prolonged high-fat/high-fructose intake with and without probiotics versus controls on NAFLD in piglets, to identify the mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of the disease. Results have since been published in Hernandez et al. 2020 (PMID: 32003601) and Zeltser et al. (PMID: 32744096).

Follow-up studies have since investigated the impact the consumption of different sugars and fats on NAFLD development in Iberian pigs.