Microbiota–host crosstalk in ulcerative colitis: mechanistic evidence and translational prospects for traditional Chinese medicine
- 1Jiangxi University of Chinese Medicine , ,
Abstract
Ulcerative colitis (UC) is sustained by reciprocal interactions among intestinal dysbiosis, altered microbial metabolism, epithelial barrier dysfunction, and mucosal immune activation. This narrative review examines that microbiota–metabolism–barrier–immune network and evaluates how traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) may influence it. Human multi-omics studies indicate that UC-associated dysbiosis is more reproducible at the level of microbial function and metabolite output than at the level of individual taxa. Experimental studies further implicate short-chain fatty acids, bile acids, tryptophan-derived indoles, arginine, and choline-related metabolites in epithelial and immune regulation. Most evidence for TCM-mediated microbiota modulation, however, comes from chemically induced experimental colitis, organoid, or cell systems; human interventional evidence remains limited. We therefore grade mechanistic evidence from association through microbiota dependence, candidate strain/metabolite sufficiency, host-target validation, and integrated causal-chain validation. This distinction avoids treating genus-level relative-abundance changes as proof of microbial benefit or mediation. Emerging clinical trials of indigo naturalis, Curcumin–QingDai, Andrographis paniculata extract, curcumin, and selected multicomponent Chinese herbal therapies provide short-term efficacy signals, but results are preparation- and dose-dependent and do not yet establish microbiota-mediated clinical efficacy. Translation will require chemically standardized products, rigorous safety surveillance, strain- and function-resolved microbiome measurements, explicit experiments separating direct herbal actions from microbiota-dependent effects, and clinical trials incorporating endoscopic, histological, pharmacokinetic, microbial, metabolic, and long-term safety outcomes.
Related
- Evaluating traditional Chinese medicine modulation of the gut microbiota–bile acid axis in metabolic and inflammatory diseases: mechanistic evidence and translational priorities
- Crosstalk between gut microbiota-associated metabolites and adaptive immunity in cholecystitis: a conceptual mechanistic framework and potential therapeutic implications
- Acetylation–ubiquitination crosstalk in NLRP3–gasdermin pyroptosis: a substrate-state framework with relevance to ulcerative colitis
- Gut microbiota–cancer crosstalk: emerging molecular targets for personalized cancer treatment- a comprehensive review
- Crosstalk between ubiquitination and other post-translational modifications in cardiovascular diseases.
BibTeX
@article{chen2026microbiotahost,
title = {{Microbiota–host crosstalk in ulcerative colitis: mechanistic evidence and translational prospects for traditional Chinese medicine}},
author = {Jing Chen and Jing Du and Baoxi Mu and Jie Zhang and Guangbin Shang and Xiaojun Yan},
journal = {Frontiers in pharmacology},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fphar.2026.1956353},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13691306},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Microbiota–host crosstalk in ulcerative colitis: mechanistic evidence and translational prospects for traditional Chinese medicine
AU - Jing Chen
AU - Jing Du
AU - Baoxi Mu
AU - Jie Zhang
AU - Guangbin Shang
AU - Xiaojun Yan
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/09
JO - Frontiers in pharmacology
DO - 10.3389/fphar.2026.1956353
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13691306
AB - Ulcerative colitis (UC) is sustained by reciprocal interactions among intestinal dysbiosis, altered microbial metabolism, epithelial barrier dysfunction, and mucosal immune activation. This narrative review examines that microbiota–metabolism–barrier–immune network and evaluates how traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) may influence it. Human multi-omics studies indicate that UC-associated dysbiosis is more reproducible at the level of microbial function and metabolite output than at the level of individual taxa. Experimental studies further implicate short-chain fatty acids, bile acids, tryptophan-derived indoles, arginine, and choline-related metabolites in epithelial and immune regulation. Most evidence for TCM-mediated microbiota modulation, however, comes from chemically induced experimental colitis, organoid, or cell systems; human interventional evidence remains limited. We therefore grade mechanistic evidence from association through microbiota dependence, candidate strain/metabolite sufficiency, host-target validation, and integrated causal-chain validation. This distinction avoids treating genus-level relative-abundance changes as proof of microbial benefit or mediation. Emerging clinical trials of indigo naturalis, Curcumin–QingDai, Andrographis paniculata extract, curcumin, and selected multicomponent Chinese herbal therapies provide short-term efficacy signals, but results are preparation- and dose-dependent and do not yet establish microbiota-mediated clinical efficacy. Translation will require chemically standardized products, rigorous safety surveillance, strain- and function-resolved microbiome measurements, explicit experiments separating direct herbal actions from microbiota-dependent effects, and clinical trials incorporating endoscopic, histological, pharmacokinetic, microbial, metabolic, and long-term safety outcomes.
SN - 1663-9812
ER -