 The understanding of the causes of acute fatty liver of pregnancy 
has been improved by advances in mitochondrial biochemistry.Deficiency of LCHAD (3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase) leads to an accumulation of medium and long chain fatty acids.When this occurs in the foetus, the unmetabolized fatty acids will re-enter the maternal circulation through the placenta, and overwhelm the beta-oxidation enzymes of the mother.