PNPLA2 and Hepatic steatosis: To investigate the molecular mechanisms driving MASLD progression through hepatic steatosis, we analyzed the expression levels of three key lipid metabolism genes from liver samples: carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1 (Cpt1), diacylglycerol acyltransferase (Dgat), and adipose triglyceride lipase (Atgl).