Bile Acids in Control of the Gut-Liver-Axis

The liver and gut share an intimate relationship whose communication relies heavily on metabolites, among which bile acids play a major role. Beyond their function as emulsifiers, bile acids have been recognized for their influence on metabolism of glucose and lipids as well as for their impact on immune responses. Therefore, changes to the composition of the bile acid pool can be consequential to liver and to gut physiology. By metabolizing primary bile acids to secondary bile acids, the bacterial gut microbiome modifies how bile acids exert influence. An altered ratio of secondary to primary bile acids is found to be substantial in many studies. Thus, disease pathogenesis and progression could be changed by gut microbiome modification which influences the bile acid pool.