PLIN2 and Hepatic steatosis: Approximately 50% of the top 20 inflammation-associated proteins are cytoskeletal proteins, potentially indicating cellular structural changes in the inflamed liver (Fig. 2d), while the lipid droplet protein PLIN2 and fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4), an adipokine previously identified as a predictive marker for progression from simple steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis in patients with NAFLD47, had the first and 16th highest correlation coefficients, respectively, to hepatic steatosis.