18
December
The study of Tongji Hospital found that bifidobacterium longum can promote the recovery of hepatocellular carcinoma patients after surgery
The team of Academician Chen Xiaoping and Professor Zhang Bixiang of the Department of Liver Surgery, Tongji Hospital Affiliated to Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and the team of Professor Yang Xiangliang, Professor Liu Zhi and Professor Chen Weihua of the School of Life Science and Technology of Huazhong University of Science and Technology have found that after five years of cooperative research, Bifidobacterium longifolium can promote the recovery of liver function in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma after operation by regulating the intestinal microflora and its metabolites, thus improving the prognosis of patients, and providing a promising therapeutic strategy for hepatocellular carcinoma patients. The research results were published online on December 12 in the international authoritative journal Cell Host and Microbe.
Hepatocellular carcinoma is the third leading cause of cancer-related death, and surgical resection is the recommended treatment for patients with early and some middle stage hepatocellular carcinoma, with few complications, low perioperative mortality, and high long-term survival. Postoperative liver function recovery is very important in the perioperative management of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. In order to ensure the safety of operation and benefit of patients, it is necessary to recover the postoperative liver function quickly.
Previous studies have shown that liver function is regulated by the gut microbiota via the enterohepatic axis. The imbalance of intestinal microbiota is related to liver dysfunction and plays an important role in the pathophysiological process of postoperative liver failure in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. However, systematic evaluation of the role of gut microbiota in postoperative liver function recovery in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma is still lacking, especially in the identification of key microbial species and validation in animal models and clinical trials.
This study first clarified the importance of postoperative liver function recovery for long-term survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma through retrospective and prospective cohort analysis, and identified bifidobacterium longum, a key intestinal microbe affecting liver function recovery. Subsequently, in the constructed hepatectomy mouse model of liver injury, fecal microorganisms of hepatocellular carcinomatous patients with different degrees of liver function recovery after transplantation and bifidobacterium longum were used to prove that the recovery of liver function is related to intestinal microorganisms, especially bifidobacterium longum.Next, in an open, randomized, blank controlled clinical trial, we demonstrated that perioperative oral administration of live microbes containing bifidobacterium longum significantly improved postoperative liver function recovery, shortened postoperative hospital stay, and improved one-year overall survival in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.
In terms of mechanism, through multi-omics analysis and verification, the beneficial changes of gut microbiota and the changes of key metabolic pathways including the increase of 5-hydroxytryptamine, secondary bile acids and short-chain fatty acids in the gut were revealed. These key metabolites then enter the liver through the enterohepatic axis, and play a role in reducing liver inflammation, reducing the degree of liver fibrosis, promoting the proliferation of liver cells, and ultimately promoting the recovery of liver function.
