Pleiotropic roles of microbial bile acid metabolism in intestinal health and diseases.

Microbial bile acid metabolism is strongly linked to the pathogenesis of intestinal diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease, enteric infections, and colorectal cancer.

• Why it matters: Understanding how microbial bile acid modifications influence intestinal health is crucial because perturbations are associated with disease development, yet the mechanisms remain unclear.
• What they did: The review summarizes recent studies on microbial enzymatic pathways and modifications of bile acids, highlighting their roles in promoting or preventing intestinal diseases, and discusses how gut microbiota and bile acids modulate immune responses.
• The result: Advances suggest dietary patterns can reshape gut microbiota and bile acids to prevent diseases, and future research directions aim to address challenges in microbial bile acid modifications and intestinal homeostasis.