MINI REVIEW article
Front. Immunol.
Sec. Microbial Immunology
This article is part of the Research TopicHost-microbiota immuno-interactions for personalized microbial therapeutics: Volume IIView all 7 articles
Research progress on the role of gut microbiota dysbiosis in the pathogenesis of immune‑mediated liver diseases
Provisionally accepted
- 1Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Research and Development of Natural Drugs, School of Pharmacy, Guangdong Medical University, Dongguan, China
- 2Shenzhen Longhua District Central Hospital, Shenzhen, China
- 3Changsha Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Changsha, China
- 4The First Hospital of Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha, China
- 5Jiaying University, Meizhou, China
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Gut microbiota dysbiosis plays a significant role in the pathogenesis of immune-mediated liver diseases (IMLDs), including autoimmune hepatitis (AIH), primary biliary cholangitis (PBC), and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), through multiple gut-liver axis mechanisms. Microbial metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and secondary bile acids regulate hepatic immune homeostasis by activating G protein-coupled receptors (GPRs) and the farnesoid X receptor (FXR). Concurrently, disruption of the intestinal barrier integrity allows endotoxins (e.g., lipopolysaccharide) to activate hepatic macrophages via the TLR4/NF-κB pathway, triggering a pro-inflammatory cytokine cascade. Studies indicate an enrichment of Veillonella in AIH patients, while PBC patients display elevated Enterobacteriaceae and reduced Oscillospira spp. PSC is characterized by Klebsiella pneumoniae translocation and Candida albicans toxin-mediated injury. Therapeutic strategies such as fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), probiotics, prebiotics, and bacteriophages therapy have shown efficacy in clinical settings, underscoring the potential of targeting the gut microbiota for managing IMLDs. Future research should integrate immune cell regulation by gut-derived factors and develop precision therapies based on the gut-liver axis.
Keywords: Epidemiology, Gut microbiota dysbiosis, Immune‑mediated liver diseases, Immunomodulation, Therapeutic management
Received: 19 Sep 2025; Accepted: 10 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Wang, Chen, Wang, Liu, Zeng, Xie, Chen and Qian. 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: Xiaokang Wang
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