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Updated: Mar 29, 2026

An Intestinal Gut Organ Culture System for Analyzing Host-Microbiota Interactions
Published on: June 30, 2021
Functions of innate immune cells and commensal bacteria in gut homeostasis
Hisako Kayama1, Kiyoshi Takeda2
1Laboratory of Immune Regulation, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Graduate School of Medicine and Laboratory of Mucosal Immunology, WPI Immunology Frontier Research Center, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan.
Abstract:
The intestinal immune system remains unresponsive to beneficial microbes and dietary antigens while activating pro-inflammatory responses against pathogens for host defence. In intestinal mucosa, abnormal activation of innate immunity, which directs adaptive immune responses, causes the onset and/or progression of inflammatory bowel diseases. Thus, innate immunity is finely regulated in the gut. Multiple innate immune cell subsets have been identified in both murine and human intestinal lamina propria. Some innate immune cells play a key role in the maintenance of gut homeostasis by preventing inappropriate adaptive immune responses while others are associated with the pathogenesis of intestinal inflammation through development of Th1 and Th17 cells. In addition, intestinal microbiota and their metabolites contribute to the regulation of innate/adaptive immune responses. Accordingly, perturbation of microbiota composition can trigger intestinal inflammation by driving inappropriate immune responses.
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