Biliary disease and intestinal microbiota

Abstract

Recent advances in the analysis of gut microbiota have led to reports of increased or decreased intestinal bacteria in various hepatobiliary diseases. The intestinal tract and liver are connected via the portal vein. Altered intestinal bacterial composition, weakening of the intestinal barrier, bacterial translocation of intestinal bacteria and their metabolites outside the intestinal tract, and activation of host immunity have been reported as one of the mechanisms of pathogenesis and development of biliary diseases via the gut-liver axis, but many aspects remain to be clarified. In this article, we summarize the possible involvement of intestinal bacteria in the pathogenesis of primary sclerosing cholangitis and other biliary diseases reported using clinical samples and animal models, and also refer to the usefulness of intestinal bacteria as diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets in the future.