iNOVA4Health partner and coordinator, iBET, and Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Aragon (IIS-Aragon) investigation on the role of gut microbiome in hepatic maturation resulted in the publication of a seminar article on Journal of Hepatology – one of the premier publications in the field of gastroenterology and hepatology.

Herein, researchers elucidate gut microbiome as a critical contributor in hepatic maturation postnatally and throughout life. The publication delves deeper in the influence of the gut microbiome on liver maturation, function and homeostasis, a relatively new concept, representing a paradigm shift on hepatology research.

“The detailed understanding of Gut-liver axis and the influence of gut microbiota in hepatic development opens the door to a myriad of new possibilities, including therapeutic strategies and approaches to improve maturation and transplantation of bioengineered livers” says Joana Almeida, first author of the publication, PhD student at Stem Cell Bioengineering Lab in collaboration with the Organ Bioengineering and Regenerative Medicine Lab of IIS-Aragon.

Among other applications, this publication reports that microbiome-derived signatures can be used as non-invasive biomarkers for hepatic diseases and for in vitro modeling of the gut-liver axis to better study, on a personalized basis, how gut microbiome promotes health and onsets disease.

Congratulations to the authors Joana I. Almeida, Miguel F. Tenreiro, Lucía Martinez-Santamaria, Sara Guerrero Aspizua, Javier P. Gisbert, Paula M. Alves, Margarida Serra and Pedro M. Baptista.

Original Review Article:

Almeida JI, Tenreiro MF, Martinez-Santamaria L, Aspizua SG, Gisbert JP, Alves PM, Serra M, Baptista PM. (2021). Hallmarks of the human intestinal microbiome on liver maturation and function, Journal of Hepatology. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhep.2021.10.015