Gut Microbes' Metabolite Dampens Proliferation of Intestinal Stem Cells (IMAGE)

WashU Medicine

Gut Microbes' Metabolite Dampens Proliferation of Intestinal Stem Cells

Caption

Intestinal stem cells are sequestered in pockets in the lining of the intestine to avoid contact with a metabolite produced by beneficial microbes in the gut. That metabolite -- butyrate -- restricts the proliferation of stem cells, shown here in green, potentially hampering the intestine from repairing itself after an injury or damage related to inflammatory bowel disease, according to new research at Washington University in St. Louis. 

Credit

Hiroyuki Miyoshi

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