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REVIEW article
Front. Immunol.
Sec. Microbial Immunology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2025.1584023
Dual Regulatory Effects of Gut Microbiota and Their Metabolites in Rheumatoid Arthritis: Balancing Pathogenic and Protective Mechanisms
Provisionally accepted- 1 Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou, China
- 2 Affiliated Hospital of Gansu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, China
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic autoimmune disorder characterized by destructive, symmetric joint inflammation and synovitis, resulting in substantial disability that profoundly compromises patients' quality of life. Its pathogenesis encompasses complex interactions between genetic and environmental factors. Recent advances in bacterial DNA sequencing technologies have uncovered a significant correlation between the human gut microbiota composition and rheumatoid arthritis progression. Growing clinical and experimental evidence establishes the gut-joint axis as a crucial mediator in rheumatoid arthritis pathogenesis. Comprehensive investigation of gut microbial communities and their metabolites' influence on rheumatoid arthritis mechanisms, coupled with the elucidation of microbiome's bidirectional regulatory effects in disease development, not only deepens our understanding of pathological processes but also establishes a theoretical framework for developing novel diagnostic biomarkers and personalized therapeutic interventions to enhance patient outcomes.
Keywords: Gut Microbiota, intestinal metabolites, Gut-joint axis, Rheumatoid arthritis, Bidirectional regulation
Received: 26 Feb 2025; Accepted: 07 Apr 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Xingwen, Chen, Wang, Wang and Qi. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Peng Qi, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou, China
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