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. 2021 Sep 28;8:725390. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2021.725390

Figure 1.

Figure 1

Molecular and cellular mediators of the gut-liver axis implicated in the progression of liver inflammation in chronic liver diseases. The communication between the liver and the gut is bidirectional. The liver secretes primary bile acids and antimicrobial peptides in the bile ducts while the gut contains host-, food-, and microbiota-derived antigens and metabolites. In normal conditions, these signals contribute to maintain physiological immune cell populations in the gut and are well-tolerated by the liver. However, in pathological conditions and because of a perturbed intestinal barrier (e.g., in NASH, NAFLD, PSC), DAMPs and PAMPs originating from the intestines translocate to the liver via the hepatic portal vein and thus, promote liver injury and inflammation and sustain liver disease progression. DAMPs, Danger-associated molecular patterns; LPS, Lipopolysaccharide; NAFLD, Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease; NASH, Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis; PAMPs, Pathogen-associated molecular patterns; PSC, Primary sclerosing cholangitis. Created with Biorender.