Kramer Dylan J, Wang Weicang, Loque Ikaika, Walters-Laird Chara J, Morisseau Christophe, Xiao Xiaoyue, Nearing Marie, Santos Rocha Clarissa, Dandekar Abhaya, Hammock Bruce, Dandekar Satya
Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, California, USA.
Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of California Davis, Davis, California, USA.
mBio. 2025 Sep 10;16(9):e0171825. doi: 10.1128/mbio.01718-25. Epub 2025 Aug 12.
Infectious and non-infectious liver diseases are marked by disrupted liver metabolism and are frequently accompanied by gut epithelial barrier dysfunction and microbial dysbiosis, reflecting the compromised gut-liver axis. Despite the pivotal role of the gut-liver axis in health, transformative therapeutic interventions that simultaneously target both the liver and gut remain underexplored. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARα) suppression drives both gut and liver metabolic diseases. In this study, we report on the therapeutic impact of microbial metabolite, 10-hydroxystearic acid (10-HSA), on restoring lipid metabolism and liver regeneration through PPARα activation, leading to a functional gut-liver axis in an liver injury model. We previously identified 10-HSA, a known PPARα agonist, in treated intestine. Here, we report that oral administration of 10-HSA prevented AFB1-induced gut epithelial barrier disruption and preserved mucosal T cell populations. Prominent downstream effects of 10-HSA-activated PPARα signaling included significant upregulation of known PPARα-regulated gene expression in the gut and liver; prevention of fibrotic changes and reduction of TGF-β signaling-related gene expression in the gut and liver; and activation of toxicant clearance metabolic pathways in the liver through the PPARα-NRF2 pathway. Restoration of the functional gut microenvironment during 10-HSA treatment was evident by increased gut microbial diversity and circulating citrulline levels. Our findings unveil a novel therapeutic trajectory that harnesses a single microbial metabolite to activate PPARα-mediated tissue repair/renewal pathways across the gut-liver axis, offering a promising biologic therapeutic for treatment of metabolic and inflammatory liver diseases.IMPORTANCEChronic liver diseases, including liver steatosis and fibrosis, are driven in part by dysregulation of PPARα and lipid metabolism. These diseases also generate gut barrier disruption and microbiome dysbiosis, leading to dysfunction of the gut-liver axis. Therapeutic strategies that concurrently support liver regeneration and gut mucosal repair can be highly effective in resolving liver metabolic diseases but remain underexplored. Microbial biotherapeutic metabolite 10-HSA induced repair and regeneration of both liver and gut through the activation of PPARα and restored lipid metabolism. Our findings reveal the therapeutic potential of a single microbial bioactive lipid molecule to repair both hepatic and gut mucosal sites simultaneously with important ramifications for treatment of diseases that disrupt the gut-liver axis.
感染性和非感染性肝病的特征是肝脏代谢紊乱,常伴有肠道上皮屏障功能障碍和微生物失调,这反映了肠-肝轴受损。尽管肠-肝轴在健康中起着关键作用,但同时针对肝脏和肠道的变革性治疗干预措施仍未得到充分探索。过氧化物酶体增殖物激活受体α(PPARα)的抑制会引发肠道和肝脏的代谢疾病。在本研究中,我们报告了微生物代谢产物10-羟基硬脂酸(10-HSA)通过激活PPARα对恢复脂质代谢和肝脏再生的治疗作用,从而在肝损伤模型中建立起功能性肠-肝轴。我们之前在处理过的肠道中鉴定出了已知的PPARα激动剂10-HSA。在此,我们报告口服10-HSA可预防黄曲霉毒素B1诱导的肠道上皮屏障破坏,并维持黏膜T细胞群体。10-HSA激活的PPARα信号的显著下游效应包括肠道和肝脏中已知PPARα调节基因表达的显著上调;预防纤维化变化并降低肠道和肝脏中与转化生长因子-β信号相关的基因表达;以及通过PPARα-NRF2途径激活肝脏中的毒物清除代谢途径。10-HSA治疗期间功能性肠道微环境的恢复表现为肠道微生物多样性增加和循环瓜氨酸水平升高。我们的研究结果揭示了一种新的治疗途径,即利用单一微生物代谢产物激活PPARα介导的跨肠-肝轴的组织修复/更新途径,为治疗代谢性和炎症性肝病提供了一种有前景的生物治疗方法。
重要性
慢性肝病,包括肝脂肪变性和肝纤维化,部分是由PPARα和脂质代谢失调驱动的。这些疾病还会导致肠道屏障破坏和微生物群失调,进而导致肠-肝轴功能障碍。同时支持肝脏再生和肠道黏膜修复的治疗策略在解决肝脏代谢疾病方面可能非常有效,但仍未得到充分探索。微生物生物治疗代谢产物10-HSA通过激活PPARα诱导肝脏和肠道的修复与再生,并恢复脂质代谢。我们的研究结果揭示了单一微生物生物活性脂质分子同时修复肝脏和肠道黏膜部位的治疗潜力,这对治疗破坏肠-肝轴的疾病具有重要意义。