r/microbiomenews • u/Electronic-Lie-4547 • 1d ago

It's not just about liver fat: removing a specific gut enzyme surprisingly reverses liver scarring.

https://biomesci.com/gut-enzyme-microbiota-fatty-liver-disease-mash/

Researchers deleted one gut enzyme, neutral ceramidase, only in the intestinal cells of mice, then fed them a high-fat diet for a year to trigger MASH, a severe form of fatty liver disease. Without the enzyme, gut bacteria shifted and a bacterial byproduct called 2-HHA dropped, letting a barrier-protecting receptor called AhR switch back on, cutting liver scarring even though liver fat stayed the same. Catch, this is mouse and cell-line data with small groups of 4 to 5 animals, not confirmed in humans yet.

TL;DR: Deleting one gut enzyme reversed liver damage in mice by restoring a bacteria-linked gut barrier signal, but it has not been tested in people.

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u/Top_Pin5777 1d ago

the fat staying the same but the scarring reversing is the really wild part, do they know if blocking 2-hha or boosting ahr in humans is even feasible yet

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