Your gut talks to your liver: Study reveals how microbes influence liver function through DNA 'switches'

A study led by scientists from the A*STAR Genome Institute of Singapore (A*STAR GIS) has uncovered how the gut microbiome can influence gene activity in the liver by acting on short stretches of regulatory DNA that function like molecular "switches." By testing the activity of more than 100,000 human DNA switches linked to liver biology and comparing results from both in vitro and in vivo approaches, the team identified which switches operate under real physiological conditions and how microbial signals can modify their activity.

This provides a clearer biological basis for how gut microbes shape liver function, offering new avenues for precision diagnostics and targeted therapies for liver disease.

The findings were published in Molecular Cell. ...