Human intestine harbors more than a trillion microorganisms that contributes to many of the host physiological processes, including digestion and carbohydrate fermentation, vitamin synthesis, mucosal lymphoid tissue maturation, and pathobionts colonization inhibition. The interaction between the host immune system and the gut microbiota is important for the maintenance of mucosal immune homeostasis and epithelial barrier integrity, avoiding bacterial translocation to lamina propria and bloodstream, immune cell activation and local and systemic inflammation. However, the disruption of this healthy interaction, with decreased microbiota metabolic function and diversity, with a predominance of harmful microbes, defined as intestinal dysbiosis, may contribute to the onset of chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, which has been increasing over the last decades.
Recent evidences suggest that intestinal dysbiosis, driven by genetic and environmental factors, including antibiotic use and industrialized diet, is shifting the gut microbiota in ways that induce intestinal inflammation and increasing the risk of developing diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease, celiac disease, multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, type 2 diabetes, allergic diseases, liver, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases.
The hypotheses proposed to link intestinal dysbiosis with autoimmune diseases include molecular mimicry, bystander activation, Th17/Tregs imbalance, and the posttranslational modification of luminal proteins promoted by enzymes from dysbiotic microbiota, which modify substrates in a different way than that performed under eubiotic conditions. Furthermore, studies showed that commensal microbes and the microbiota metabolites could regulate immune cells and cytokines via epigenetic modifications, suggesting their possible role in autoimmunity and in chronic inflammatory diseases.
In this Research Topic, we aim to assemble a series of articles that highlight how the intestinal dysbiosis plays a role in chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, evaluating how these imbalances in the gut microbiota can affect the local and systemic immune homeostasis. We aim to collect studies that report mechanisms involved in the intestinal dysbiosis that affect these diseases, including leaky gut, bacterial translocation, and defective immune regulatory functions leading to chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. We welcome the submission of Review, Mini-Review and Original Research articles that cover, but are not limited to, the following topics:
1. Metagenomics and metabolomics studies in mice and humans evaluating the intestinal dysbiosis in chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases;
2. Pathological conditions in mice and humans associated with intestinal dysbiosis;
3. Defective crosstalk between the commensal microbiota and the immune system in the intestine: leaky gut, bacterial translocation, and mechanisms of immune activation in chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases;
4. Dietary and probiotic interventions aimed at restoring intestinal dysbiosis and gut immune homeostasis in chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.
Dr. Fasano holds stocks in Alba Therapeutics and receives financial support from Takeda Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Taneja receives financial support from Elysium Health and Evelo Biosciences. The other Topic Editors declare no competing interests with regards to the Research Topic subject.
Human intestine harbors more than a trillion microorganisms that contributes to many of the host physiological processes, including digestion and carbohydrate fermentation, vitamin synthesis, mucosal lymphoid tissue maturation, and pathobionts colonization inhibition. The interaction between the host immune system and the gut microbiota is important for the maintenance of mucosal immune homeostasis and epithelial barrier integrity, avoiding bacterial translocation to lamina propria and bloodstream, immune cell activation and local and systemic inflammation. However, the disruption of this healthy interaction, with decreased microbiota metabolic function and diversity, with a predominance of harmful microbes, defined as intestinal dysbiosis, may contribute to the onset of chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, which has been increasing over the last decades.
Recent evidences suggest that intestinal dysbiosis, driven by genetic and environmental factors, including antibiotic use and industrialized diet, is shifting the gut microbiota in ways that induce intestinal inflammation and increasing the risk of developing diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease, celiac disease, multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, type 2 diabetes, allergic diseases, liver, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases.
The hypotheses proposed to link intestinal dysbiosis with autoimmune diseases include molecular mimicry, bystander activation, Th17/Tregs imbalance, and the posttranslational modification of luminal proteins promoted by enzymes from dysbiotic microbiota, which modify substrates in a different way than that performed under eubiotic conditions. Furthermore, studies showed that commensal microbes and the microbiota metabolites could regulate immune cells and cytokines via epigenetic modifications, suggesting their possible role in autoimmunity and in chronic inflammatory diseases.
In this Research Topic, we aim to assemble a series of articles that highlight how the intestinal dysbiosis plays a role in chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, evaluating how these imbalances in the gut microbiota can affect the local and systemic immune homeostasis. We aim to collect studies that report mechanisms involved in the intestinal dysbiosis that affect these diseases, including leaky gut, bacterial translocation, and defective immune regulatory functions leading to chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. We welcome the submission of Review, Mini-Review and Original Research articles that cover, but are not limited to, the following topics:
1. Metagenomics and metabolomics studies in mice and humans evaluating the intestinal dysbiosis in chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases;
2. Pathological conditions in mice and humans associated with intestinal dysbiosis;
3. Defective crosstalk between the commensal microbiota and the immune system in the intestine: leaky gut, bacterial translocation, and mechanisms of immune activation in chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases;
4. Dietary and probiotic interventions aimed at restoring intestinal dysbiosis and gut immune homeostasis in chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.
Dr. Fasano holds stocks in Alba Therapeutics and receives financial support from Takeda Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Taneja receives financial support from Elysium Health and Evelo Biosciences. The other Topic Editors declare no competing interests with regards to the Research Topic subject.
