Gut microbiota is an assortment of microorganisms inhabiting the length and width of the mammalian gastrointestinal tract. The composition of this microbial community is host specific, evolving throughout an individual's lifetime and susceptible to both exogenous and endogenous modifications. Recent renewed interest in the structure and function of this "organ" has illuminated its central position in health and disease. The microbiota is intimately involved in numerous aspects of normal host physiology, from nutritional status to behavior and stress response. Additionally, they can be a central or a contributing cause of many diseases, affecting both near and far organ systems. The overall balance in the composition of the gut microbial community, as well as the presence or absence of key species capable of effecting specific responses, is important in ensuring homeostasis or lack thereof at the intestinal mucosa and beyond. The mechanisms through which microbiota exerts its beneficial or detrimental influences remain largely undefined, but include elaboration of signaling molecules and recognition of bacterial epitopes by both intestinal epithelial and mucosal immune cells. The advances in modeling and analysis of gut microbiota will further our knowledge of their role in health and disease, allowing customization of existing and future therapeutic and prophylactic modalities.

Gut Microbiota in Health and Disease

https://www.gastrojournal.org/article/S0016-5085(13)00291-6/pdf

Acute-on-chronic liver failure is a distinct syndrome that develops in patients with acute decompensation of cirrhosis

EASL Clinical Practice Guidelines for the management of patients with decompensated cirrhosis

Background: Understanding of the gut-liver axis is important for the up-to-date management of liver cirrhosis, and changes of intestinal functions form the core o

/pdf/changes-of-intestinal-functions-in-liver-cirrhosis-3jpifzc6ch.pdf

Changes of Intestinal Functions in Liver Cirrhosis

https://aasldpubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/hep.27406

The global burden of liver disease: The major impact of China

The Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver (APASL) set up a working party on acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) in 2004, with a mandate to develop consensus guidelines on various aspects of ACLF relevant to disease patterns and clinical practice in the Asia-Pacific region. Experts predominantly from the Asia–Pacific region constituted this working party and were requested to identify different issues of ACLF and develop the consensus guidelines. A 2-day meeting of the working party was held on January 22–23, 2008, at New Delhi, India, to discuss and finalize the consensus statements. Only those statements that were unanimously approved by the experts were accepted. These statements were circulated to all the experts and subsequently presented at the Annual Conference of the APASL at Seoul, Korea, in March 2008. The consensus statements along with relevant background information are presented in this review.

/pdf/acute-on-chronic-liver-failure-consensus-recommendations-of-41vjck9vv5.pdf

Acute-on-chronic liver failure: consensus recommendations of the Asian Pacific Association for the study of the liver (APASL)

https://aasldpubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/hep.20194

Qing Liu

Papers

Acute-on-chronic liver failure: consensus recommendations of the Asian Pacific Association for the study of the liver (APASL)

Synbiotic modulation of gut flora: effect on minimal hepatic encephalopathy in patients with cirrhosis.

Dietary fiber decreases ammonia levels in patients with cirrhosis. Authors' reply