Abstract
The gut microbiota is a critical element in the balance between human health and disease. Its impairment, defined as dysbiosis, is associated with gastroenterological and systemic diseases. Pancreatic secretions are involved in the composition and changes of the gut microbiota, and the gut microbiota may colonize the pancreatic parenchyma and be associated with the occurrence of diseases. The gut microbiota and the pancreas influence each other, resulting in a “gut microbiota-pancreas axis”. Moreover, the gut microbiota may be involved in pancreatic diseases, both through direct bacterial colonization and an indirect effect of small molecules and toxins derived from dysbiosis. Pancreatic diseases such as acute pancreatitis, chronic pancreatitis, autoimmune pancreatitis, and pancreatic cancer are common gastroenterological diseases associated with high morbidity and mortality. The involvement of the microbiota in pancreatic diseases is increasingly recognized. Therefore, modifying the intestinal bacterial flora could have important therapeutic implications on these pathologies. The aim of this study is to review the literature to evaluate the alterations of the gut microbiota in pancreatic diseases, and the role of the microbiota in the treatment of these diseases.
Highlights
The gut microbiota is composed of microbes from different kingdoms, including bacteria, fungi, and viruses [2]
We review the current literature to evaluate the role of gut microbiota in pancreatic diseases such as acute pancreatitis, chronic pancreatitis, autoimmune pancreatitis, pancreatic cancer, and Non-Alcoholic Fatty Pancreatic Disease (NAFPD)
The tight junctions of the pancreatic ductal epithelium and antimicrobial peptide secretion provide a barrier to bacterial translocation
Summary
The human gut is colonized by 100 trillion microorganisms and over 1000 different resident bacterial species [1]. The gut microbiota is composed of microbes from different kingdoms, including bacteria, fungi, and viruses [2]. The gut microbiota is emerging as a critical determinant of human body homeostasis and the balance between health and disease. An imbalance in the gut microbiota is termed “dysbiosis” and is associated with gastrointestinal diseases (e.g., celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, colonic diverticulosis, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease), and with systemic diseases such as obesity, Alzheimer’s disease, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes mellitus [3,4,5,6,7]. The gut microbiota is highly individualized and altered by internal and external factors [8]
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