AUTHOR=Hou Jun-Jie , Ma A-Huo , Qin Yue-Hua 

TITLE=Activation of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor in inflammatory bowel disease: insights from gut microbiota

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2023

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-and-infection-microbiology/articles/10.3389/fcimb.2023.1279172

DOI=10.3389/fcimb.2023.1279172

ISSN=2235-2988

ABSTRACT=Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory intestinal disease that affects more than 3.5 million people, with rising prevalence. It deeply affects patients' daily life, increasing the burden on patients, families, and society. Presently, the etiology of IBD remains incompletely clarified, while emerging evidence demonstrated the altered gut microbiota and decreased aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) activity closely associated with IBD. Furthermore, microbial metabolites are capable of AHR activation as AHR ligands, while AHR, in turn, affects the microbiota through various pathways. In light of the complex connection among gut microbiota, AHR, and IBD, it is urgent to review the latest research progress in this field. In this review, we described the role of gut microbiota and AHR activation in IBD and discussed the cross-talk between gut microbiota and AHR in the context of IBD. Taken as a whole, we proposed new therapeutic strategies targeting the AHR-microbiota axis for IBD, even for other related diseases caused by AHR-microbiota dysbiosis should be expected.