Gut microbiota and Hepatitis B virus-Induced Chronic Liver Disease: implications for faecal microbiota transplantation therapy

Summary Hepatitis B is one of the most common infectious diseases globally. It has been estimated that there are 350 million chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) carriers worldwide. The liver is connected to the small intestine by the bile duct, which carries bile formed in the liver to the intestine. Nearly all of the blood that leaves the stomach and intestines must pass through the liver. Human intestines harbor a wide diversity of community of microbes, which are collectively termed as the gut microbiota. Gut microbiota play a significant role in host metabolic processes, host immune modulation and influence host development and physiology (organ development). Altered gut microbiota is a common complication in liver disease. Alterations of intestinal microbiota seem to play an important role in induction and promotion of HBV-induced chronic liver disease progression, specific species among intestinal commensal bacteria may play either a pathogenic or a protective role in the development of HBV-induced chronic liver disease. Thus, the gut microbiome may represent fertile targets for prevention or management of HBV-induced chronic liver disease. Faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) may be considered a potentially useful therapy for HBV-related disease in the future. However, the available data in this field remain limited, and the relevant scientific work has only just begun; especially, at present, new technologies have allowed the attempt to a systematic gut microbiota study giving more realistic information about its composition and its pathological variance. This review summarizes the cutting edge of research about relation between gut microbiota and HBV-induced chronic liver disease and future prospective of FMT therapy.