Conclusion
NAFLD, impaired intestinal barrier and bile acid
According to this bibliometric analysis, research on the gut-liver axis in NAFLD started since 2004. With researchers’ in-depth understanding of gut microbes, new therapeutic targets in the gut-liver axis have a potentially wide application in treating NAFLD. Current research hotspots mainly include animal models of NAFLD, therapeutic targets and mechanism exploration on the gut-liver axis, consisting of gut microbial dysbiosis, impaired intestinal barrier and bile acid metabolism. At present, short-chain fatty acids and clinical research especially randomized controlled trials are new research hotspots in this field.