The role of the microbiome in NAFLD and NASH

Abstract

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the hepatic manifestation of cardiometabolic syndrome, which often also includes obesity, diabetes, and dyslipidemia. It is rapidly becoming the most prevalent liver disease worldwide. A sizable minority of NAFLD patients develop nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which is characterized by inflammatory changes that can lead to progressive liver damage, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Recent studies have shown that in addition to genetic predisposition and diet, the gut microbiota affects hepatic carbohydrate and lipid metabolism as well as influences the balance between pro‐inflammatory and anti‐inflammatory effectors in the liver, thereby impacting NAFLD and its progression to NASH. In this review, we will explore the impact of gut microbiota and microbiota‐derived compounds on the development and progression of NAFLD and NASH, and the unexplored factors related to potential microbiome contributions to this common liver disease.

Antibiotic pretreatment alleviates liver transplant damage in mice and humans

“…Recent research is deepening our understanding of microbiota, an ecosystem of bacteria, archaea, protists, fungi, and viruses in the human gut, as not just an idle bystander but an interconnected and active player in human health and disease. Indeed, compositional changes in the intestinal microbiota, such as dysbiosis, mechanistically contribute to hepatic carbohydrate and lipid metabolism and influence the balance between pro-and antiinflammatory effectors, thereby affecting nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and its progression to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) (40,41). As the contribution of the gut microbiome in Figure 6.…”

Anti-NASH Drug Development Hitches a Lift on PPAR Agonism

“…It also holds the capacity to trigger inflammasome activation, leading to sustained hepatic inflammation [133]. Much more complex alterations in the gut microbiome of NASH patients have been reported [125,134], but it is clear that PPAR-targeted therapy might not be effective in the long-term for these patients, since the real cause of the disease is not targeted. Multiple trials are running to specifically target and restore the gut microbiome (e.g., using probiotics) in NASH patients, in which already satisfactory results have been obtained [135].…”

Sorting and cultivation of Faecalibacterium prausnitzii from fecal samples using flow cytometry in anaerobic conditions

“…The field of microbiome research has rapidly developed these last few years, with countless associations reported between microbiota composition and specific health conditions. This is especially true for human gut ecosystem, for which dysbiotic microbiota have been associated with metabolic syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease and response to cancer immunotherapy to mention just a few, thus offering new avenues to explore with the ultimate goal to develop new, complementary tools to treat these conditions [3–5]. In this context, collections of bacterial strains are needed in order to explore functionalities and host-bacteria interactions, and go beyond simple association studies.…”