Effects of Gut Microbiota and Antibiotics on Intestinal Mucosal Immunity

Microbial colonization of the intestinal mucosal may produce small molecules and metabolites that have local and systemic effects on intestinal mucosal immunity in health and disease. The interaction between gut microbes and intestinal mucosa is complex. In addition to causing infection, gut microbes can influence intestinal mucosal immunity in the following two ways. First, some non-pathogenic bacteria can confer health benefits to intestinal mucosal immunity by removing cholesterol, secreting enzymes and bacteriocins, and performing immunomodulation. Second, some bacteria may produce toxins and carcinogenic metabolites, which can induce intestinal mucosal inflammation-cancer transformation, make tumors more resistant to chemotherapy drugs, and suppress the intestinal mucosal immunity’s anticancer immune responses. Moreover, antibiotics also play an important role in the interactions of gut microbe- intestinal mucosal immunity by altering gut microbial communities to affect intestinal mucosal immunity.

To date, despite the accelerated progress in cell biology over the past few years and the development of new concepts and methods that enable more in-depth studies on gut microbe-intestinal mucosal immunity interactions, most studies on gut microbes still focus on how microbes cause infection, which accounts for only a small fraction of the whole role of gut microbe playing in intestinal mucosal immunity. Therefore, the impacts of gut microbiota and antibiotics on intestinal mucosal immunity remain to be further explored.

Here, we aim to discuss and present current cutting-edge advances in gut microbiota-intestinal mucosal immunity interactions. We hope that any advances in this Research Topic will inform the development of diagnostic tools and drugs in the clinic.

This Research Topic focuses on providing new insight into the mechanisms by which microorganisms affect intestinal mucosal immunity to develop novel diagnostic tools and therapeutic strategies. Therefore, we encourage submissions related to, but not limited to, the following topics:
1. Benefits of non-pathogenic gut microbiota to the intestinal mucosal immunity
2. Effects of gut microbiota disorder on the intestinal mucosal immunity
3. Factors and mechanisms by which gut microbiota drive the intestinal mucosal inflammation-cancer transformation
4. Gut microbiota-based biomarkers that can be used for the detection of intestinal mucosal-related inflammation or tumor/cancer
5. Effects of antibiotics on intestinal mucosal immunity by influencing the gut microbiota
We welcome Original Research, Reviews, Mini Reviews, Methods, Hypothesis and Theory articles.

Keywords: antibiotics, gut microbiota, intestinal mucosal immunity

Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.