Gastroenterology and Liver

Microbiome and Gut Health

The human gut microbiome has emerged as a key regulator of gastrointestinal health, metabolism, immunity, and even mental well-being. This session will delve into the complex relationship between the microbiome and digestive diseases, highlighting how dysbiosis—an imbalance in gut bacteria—contributes to conditions like IBD, IBS, colorectal cancer, and liver disease. Advancements in microbiome research have paved the way for targeted interventions, including probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, and fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), which are showing promise in restoring gut balance and alleviating symptoms. Cutting-edge metagenomic and metabolomic tools now allow researchers to identify microbial signatures associated with specific disorders, enabling early diagnosis and personalized therapy. The session will also cover the impact of diet, antibiotics, and lifestyle on gut flora, as well as future directions in microbiome engineering. Understanding and harnessing the microbiome represents a frontier in preventative and therapeutic gastroenterology, with broad implications for systemic health.