Abstract
The intestinal microbiota, which evolved over tens of thousands of years along with their human hosts, constitutes a complex and diverse ecosystem whose composition differs from person to person. Accumulating evidence indicates that commensal bacteria exert numerous beneficial physiological effects for humans, including nutrition, protection, metabolism, organ development and immunomodulation. However, mucosal immune responses to intestinal microflora require precise control to allow appropriate defense against potential pathogens but restrict the immune response to beneficial resident bacteria. The task of intestinal homeostasis is accomplished by epithelium and specialized immune system in the gastrointestinal tract. Alternation in the composition of the bacterial community, consisting of increased representation of harmful species or under presence of protective species, or dysbiosis has been linked to various chronic and inflammatory disorders, such as inflammatory bowel disease. An improved understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms of host-microorganism interactions could bring new insights into onset and pathogenesis of several autoimmune diseases. This review will discuss physiologic properties of commensal microbiota and how dysregulated immune responses to them contribute to chronic mucosal inflammation.
Highlights
No life exists in absolute isolation, and all multicellular organisms live in close proximity and interact with neighboring microorganisms, either in mutualistic or commensal relationships
We introduce various physiologic functions of intestinal microflora and mechanisms of intestinal homeostasis, recent progress that had been made in host-microbiota relationships and how these mechanisms failed to chronic bowel inflammation
It has long been known that the commensal microbiota and pathogenic bacteria are closely associated with the development and progression of Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
Summary
No life exists in absolute isolation, and all multicellular organisms live in close proximity and interact with neighboring microorganisms, either in mutualistic or commensal relationships. The microbiota, termed microflora or normoflora, represents the collection of microbes that live in peaceful coexistence with their hosts [1]. With the host but without much interaction Their existence in the gut did not draw much attention from researchers in the field of immunology and gastroenterology for a long period of time. There is growing evidence indicating that commensal microbiota are involved in a variety of important physiological function in the gut and play a critical role in the maintenance of human health. We introduce various physiologic functions of intestinal microflora and mechanisms of intestinal homeostasis, recent progress that had been made in host-microbiota relationships and how these mechanisms failed to chronic bowel inflammation
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