title: Signals from the gut microbiota to distant organs in physiology and disease.
abstract: The ecosystem of the human gut consists of trillions of bacteria forming a bioreactor that is fueled by dietary macronutrients to produce bioactive compounds. These microbiota-derived metabolites signal to distant organs in the body, which enables the gut bacteria to connect to the immune and hormone system, to the brain (the gut-brain axis) and to host metabolism, as well as other functions of the host. This microbe-host communication is essential to maintain vital functions of the healthy host. Recently, however, the gut microbiota has been associated with a number of diseases, ranging from obesity and inflammatory diseases to behavioral and physiological abnormalities associated with neurodevelopmental disorders. In this Review, we will discuss microbiota-host cross-talk and intestinal microbiome signaling to extraintestinal organs. We will review mechanisms of how this communication might contribute to host physiology and discuss how misconfigured signaling might contribute to different diseases.
authors.affiliation: Wallenberg Laboratory and Sahlgrenska Center for Cardiovascular and Metabolic Research, Department of Molecular and Clinical Medicine, Institute of Medicine, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.
authors.forename: Bjoern O
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-6716-8284
authors.initials: BO
authors.lastname: Schroeder
authors.affiliation: Wallenberg Laboratory and Sahlgrenska Center for Cardiovascular and Metabolic Research, Department of Molecular and Clinical Medicine, Institute of Medicine, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.|Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research, Section for Metabolic Receptology and Enteroendocrinology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: Fredrik
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bäckhed