Gut Microbiota and the Microvasculature

The gut microbiota is increasingly recognized as an actuating variable shaping vascular development and endothelial cell function in the intestinal mucosa but also affecting the microvasculature of remote organs. In the small intestine, colonization with gut microbiota and subsequent activation of innate immune pathways promotes the development of intricate capillary networks and lacteals, influencing the integrity of the gut-vascular barrier as well as nutrient uptake. Since the liver yields most of its blood supply via the portal circulation, the hepatic microcirculation steadily encounters microbiota-derived patterns and active signaling metabolites that induce changes in the organization of the liver sinusoidal endothelium, influencing immune zonation of sinusoids and impacting on metabolic processes. In addition, microbiota-derived signals may affect the vasculature of distant organ systems such as the brain and the eye microvasculature. In recent years, this gut-resident microbial ecosystem was revealed to contribute to the development of several vascular disease phenotypes.