Gut microbiota involvement in the alteration of inflammatory cell infiltration and gut barrier integrity in liver cirrhosis

The gut microbiota is essential for the development and regulation of the immune and intestinal homeostasis of the host. The present study aimed to investigate the composition, diversity and functional features of the microbiota in patients with liver cirrhosis. and healthy volunteers using high-throughput sequencing of the <i>16S rRNA</i> gene, and evaluated inflammatory cell infiltration and the gut barrier in both the colonic mucosa and liver sections using histological analysis. Diversity and metagenome function of the gut microbiota significantly differed between healthy volunteers and patients with liver cirrhosis. Patients with cirrhosis showed decreased microbial richness, evenness, and diversity, with functional prediction indicating enrichment of phosphotransferase and membrane transport pathways, while amino acid and energy metabolism pathways were predominant in healthy controls. Furthermore, gut microbial dysbiosis associated with liver cirrhosis augmented inflammatory cell infiltration in the colonic mucosa and liver sections, impaired gut barrier function and enhanced intestinal permeability and bacterial translocation. The gut microbiota contributes to the pathophysiology of liver cirrhosis, which may impact prevention and treatment strategies for patients with liver cirrhosis.