The lung-gut crosstalk in respiratory and inflammatory bowel disease.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative review synthesizing mechanisms and existing literature without original data or systematic review methodology.
PubMed 37680747 · doi:10.3389/fcimb.2023.1218565
What was done
The authors conducted a narrative review summarizing mechanisms of mucosal crosstalk between the lungs and the gastrointestinal tract within the common mucosal immune system. The paper reviews evidence concerning intestinal microbiota imbalances in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and respiratory diseases—including asthma, allergy, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and respiratory infections—and discusses therapeutic strategies targeting intestinal flora.
What was found
The abstract reports no numerical findings, effect sizes, or quantitative data. It qualitatively reports that intestinal microbial imbalance disrupts intestinal epithelial barrier integrity and sustains inflammation in IBD, and that gut microbial disturbances are concurrently observed across multiple respiratory disorders.
Why it matters
This review synthesizes the conceptual framework of the lung-gut axis, highlighting how shared mucosal immunity and microbiota alterations may provide targets for modulating gut flora to treat respiratory conditions.
Limits
The abstract describes a narrative review rather than a systematic review or meta-analysis; no search criteria, study counts, or sample sizes are specified. Causal mechanisms linking gut dysbiosis to respiratory pathology remain incompletely understood, and no primary clinical trial data are presented.
Cited by
- supports The innate immune system is predominantly concentrated at mucosal barrier surfaces, including the gut mucosa, lung epithelium, and nasal passages.