2023/11/08
Faculty of Pharmacy, Keio University
Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo
A research group from the Faculty of Pharmacy, Keio University, and the Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, has revealed a correlation between biogenic hydrogen gas concentration, specific gut bacteria, and the pathophysiology of enteritis. This research is the result of a collaborative effort by Yuta Fujiki, a second-year master's student at the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Keio University (at the time of the research); Professor Yun-Gi Kim of the same university's Faculty of Pharmacy; Assistant Professor Takahisa Tanaka (at the time of the research) and Professor Ken Uchida of the Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo.
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a condition characterized by inflammation of the intestines, causing recurrent abdominal pain and diarrhea. While endoscopy is the most common method for diagnosing IBD, there is a demand for simpler, non-invasive techniques. Among these, breath analysis is gaining attention as a new diagnostic method for IBD. In fact, differences in breath components between healthy individuals and IBD patients have been reported. However, no gas component that can predict the onset or pathophysiology of IBD has been identified to date.
In this study, using an experimental colitis model, we measured changes in the concentrations of multiple biogenic gases in mice with induced enteritis. The results showed that hydrogen concentration had the strongest correlation with the pathophysiology of enteritis. We also found that the relative abundance of specific gut bacterial groups, including hydrogen-producing bacteria, correlated with both the pathophysiology of enteritis and the changes in hydrogen concentration.
These findings suggest that biogenic hydrogen gas has the potential to be used as a biomarker for predicting the onset and pathophysiology of enteritis. IBD is an intractable form of enteritis characterized by repeating cycles of relapse and remission. By measuring breath hydrogen concentration over time with high precision, it may be possible to detect the onset and recurrence of IBD at an early stage and predict treatment efficacy, holding promise for future practical applications. The results of this research were published in the online edition of Gut Microbiome by Cambridge University Press on November 6, 2023.
For the full press release, please see below.