Guo GJ, Yao F, Lu WP, Xu HM. Gut microbiome and metabolic-associated fatty liver disease: Current status and potential applications. World J Hepatol 2023; 15(7): 867-882 [PMID: 37547030 DOI: 10.4254/wjh.v15.i7.867]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Hao-Ming Xu, Doctor, MD, Doctor, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Guangzhou First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, No. 1 Panfu Road, Guangzhou 510180, Guangdong Province, China. haomingxu1992@126.com
Research Domain of This Article
Microbiology
Article-Type of This Article
Review
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Hepatol. Jul 27, 2023; 15(7): 867-882 Published online Jul 27, 2023. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v15.i7.867
Gut microbiome and metabolic-associated fatty liver disease: Current status and potential applications
Gong-Jing Guo, Fei Yao, Wei-Peng Lu, Hao-Ming Xu
Gong-Jing Guo, Gastroenterology Department of The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen & Longgang District People’s Hospital of Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518172, Guangdong Province, China
Fei Yao, Department of Science and Education, The Affiliated Brain Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 510370, Guangdong Province, China
Wei-Peng Lu, The First Clinical School, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 510120, Guangdong Province, China
Hao-Ming Xu, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Guangzhou First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510180, Guangdong Province, China
Author contributions: Guo GJ and Yao F performed the majority of the draft writing, revision of manuscript and prepared the references; Lu WP prepared the figures and table, coordinated the writing of the paper; Xu HM organized the interpretation of the data and revision of the article.
Supported byGuangzhou Planned Project of Science and Technology, No. 2023A04J0612.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Hao-Ming Xu, Doctor, MD, Doctor, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Guangzhou First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology, No. 1 Panfu Road, Guangzhou 510180, Guangdong Province, China. haomingxu1992@126.com
Received: March 23, 2023 Peer-review started: March 23, 2023 First decision: May 14, 2023 Revised: June 11, 2023 Accepted: June 30, 2023 Article in press: June 30, 2023 Published online: July 27, 2023
Abstract
Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is one of the most common chronic liver diseases worldwide. In recent years, the occurrence rate of MAFLD has been on the rise, mainly due to lifestyle changes, high-calorie diets, and imbalanced dietary structures, thereby posing a threat to human health and creating heavy social and economic burdens. With the development of 16S sequencing and integrated multi-omics analysis, the role of the gut microbiota (GM) and its metabolites in MAFLD has been further recognized. The GM plays a role in digestion, energy metabolism, vitamin synthesis, the prevention of pathogenic bacteria colonisation, and immunoregulation. The gut-liver axis is one of the vital links between the GM and the liver. Toxic substances in the intestine can enter the liver through the portal vascular system when the intestinal barrier is severely damaged. The liver also influences the GM in various ways, such as bile acid circulation. The gut-liver axis is essential in maintaining the body’s normal physiological state and plays a role in the onset and prognosis of many diseases, including MAFLD. This article reviews the status of the GM and MAFLD and summarizes the GM characteristics in MAFLD. The relationship between the GM and MAFLD is discussed in terms of bile acid circulation, energy metabolism, micronutrients, and signalling pathways. Current MAFLD treatments targeting the GM are also listed.
Core Tip: Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is a highly prevalent metabolic disease worldwide. In this review, we provide an overview of the current status and potential applications of the gut microbiota (GM) in MAFLD, focusing on key aspects such as bile acid circulation, energy metabolism, and microelement disorder, as well as signal pathways and GM metabolites implicated in MAFLD development and treatments, with a particular emphasis on targeting the microbiome.
