{"id":4643,"date":"2024-04-19T11:00:38","date_gmt":"2024-04-19T10:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/imperial-medicine\/?p=4643"},"modified":"2024-11-05T11:23:35","modified_gmt":"2024-11-05T11:23:35","slug":"world-liver-day-fmt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/imperial-medicine\/2024\/04\/19\/world-liver-day-fmt\/","title":{"rendered":"Advancing liver health through microbiome research"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Dr<\/strong><\/p>\n

On World Liver Day, Dr Benjamin Mullish<\/a> from the Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction<\/a>, discusses the research being done on the microbiome and faecal (or \u2018intestinal\u2019) microbiome transplants (FMT), and how he hopes that can be converted from \u2018bench to bedside\u2019 to improve the lives of patients with liver conditions.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

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When most of us hear the words \u2018gut bacteria\u2019, we think about germs that can cause infection and make people ill.\u00a0 However, more recently, scientists and doctors have recognised that we also have billions of \u2018beneficial\u2019 bacteria (and other microbes) in our gut that play important roles in keeping us healthy.\u00a0\u00a0 The specific \u2018mix\u2019 of microbes that a person has in their gut, and the environment in which they live \u2013 now often called the gut microbiome \u2013 is distinct between different people like a fingerprint.\u00a0 Furthermore, the gut microbiome is influenced by and altered by a number of factors, including our diet, our medications (particularly antibiotics), and how old we are.<\/p>\n

Of further interest, we now think that our gut microbiome plays an influence over our vulnerability to developing a range of medical conditions, how the condition progresses if we do develop it, and even how well we might respond to different treatments used for the condition.\u00a0 This includes a number of different liver diseases; the gut and the liver are very close physically within the body, and the gut microbiome seems to be an important factor that impacts upon how these two organs \u2018talk to\u2019 each other in health and disease.\u00a0 Within the Section of Hepatology and Gastroenterology<\/a>, one of our major areas of research relates to how an altered gut microbiome may contribute to different liver diseases, and whether we might be able to alter the gut microbiome as a new approach to treating them.<\/p>\n

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As an example of the sort of work that we do, one important recent study involved collecting blood, urine and poo samples from nearly 300 patients with , formerly known as Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease, and using cutting-edge experimental techniques to explore how the gut microbiome differs between people with less severe and more advanced versions of the condition<\/a>.\u00a0 In particular, we were able to use the unique metabolomics (the study of all the metabolites present in cells, tissues, and organs) expertise of the MRC-NIHR BRC National Phenome Centre<\/a> to identify in much greater detail than had been previously shown how a large number of chemicals produced by our gut bacteria may be linked to how MASLD progresses.\u00a0 Furthermore, we were also able to use cell culture experiments to show how the level of \u2018leakiness\u2019 of the gut wall alters depending upon the severity of the condition.\u00a0 Research like this aims to give us new insight into the cause of MASLD, to help us develop improved biomarkers (a substance whose detection indicates a particular disease state or a response to a therapeutic intervention) for the condition and may also suggest new approaches to treat the condition.<\/p>\n

If having a particular gut microbiome affects your risk of developing or outcome from a liver disease, then could altering your gut microbiome be a new way of treating the condition?\u00a0 One dramatic way of trying to change your entire gut microbiome is using an approach called \u2018faecal (or \u2018intestinal\u2019) microbiome transplant<\/a>\u2019.\u00a0 This involves:<\/p>\n