Cell nutrition is impaired in chronic GI inflammation

A group of researchers from Kiel (Germany) has described in detail for the first time how inflammation disrupts the metabolism between the body and the gut microbiome. This is not just an imbalance — it is a real breakdown of the system of nutrition and cell protection. The results of their work have been published in the journal Nature Communications.

It turns out that when the gut is inflamed, the body stops interacting normally with the microbes that live in it and usually help it. This disrupted interaction causes both bacteria and human cells to function less efficiently, especially in terms of energy production. This, in turn, only exacerbates the inflammation.

During the study, blood and stool samples from patients were analysed before and after the start of therapy. The researchers studied how the levels of certain substances, such as tryptophan and choline, which are involved in energy production in cells, changed. It was these substances that were found to be deficient. The same thing happened with the products of amino acid and fibre metabolism — substances that normally nourish the intestinal cells.

‘The microbiome stops producing the necessary metabolites, and the body is forced to adapt somehow,’ explains one of the authors, Dr. Jan Taubenheim. ‘As a result, not only nutrition is disrupted, but also the functioning of the immune system. This is what makes treatment particularly difficult.’

The experts conducted simulations and showed that certain changes in diet can affect the microbiome and slow down inflammatory processes. However, the diet must be individualised — there is no universal recipe.

Dr. Samer Kadib Alban, one of the lead authors, emphasises: ‘What works for one patient may not help another. A personalised strategy based on each person’s metabolic profile is needed.’

This research paves the way for a new approach to treatment: taking into account not only immunity but also metabolism, and seeking individual solutions — from diet to therapy. The next step will be laboratory testing and the development of specific methods for correcting metabolic disorders.