Abstract
Background
The factors that determine when genetic susceptibility to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) progresses to clinically significant liver injury remain incompletely understood.
Objective
We investigated whether disruption of the intestinal host-microbiota interface acts as a contextual modifier that amplifies
PNPLA3
I148M
-associated hepatic injury.
Design
We used a dual-hit mouse model combining hepatic
Pnpla3
I148M
-expression with
Nlrp6
-deficiency, a model of impaired intestinal mucosal homeostasis, under western-diet conditions. Multi-omics profiling, including metagenomics, metabolomics and transcriptomics, was integrated with analyses in human cohorts (Lifelines, Charité MASLD, Human Phenotype Project). Microbiota-dependent effects were examined using faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), antibiotic-mediated depletion and targeted intervention with
Akkermansia muciniphila
or its membrane protein Amuc_1100.
Results
In mice, the combination of
Pnpla3
I148M
expression and impaired intestinal sensing synergistically exacerbated gut-barrier dysfunction and bacterial encroachment, accompanied by increased portal levels of microbiota-associated metabolites, including long-chain ceramides (Cer(d18:1/16:0), Cer(d18:1/18:0)) and bile acids. These changes were associated with hepatic mitochondrial stress and inflammatory responses. Human carriers with advanced MASLD displayed microbial and metabolic signatures consistent with increased gut-derived metabolic signalling. Restoration of eubiotic microbiota via FMT or Amuc_1100 treatment improved intestinal barrier integrity and attenuated hepatic lipid accumulation in experimental models.
Conclusion
These findings suggest that gut-derived signals resulting from a disrupted intestinal barrier may act as modifiers of
PNPLA3
I148M
-clinical penetrance by amplifying downstream metabolic and inflammatory responses. By identifying these pathways linking environmental context to genetic susceptibility, this study highlights the host-microbiota interface as a potential target for strategies aimed at limiting MASLD progression in genetically at-risk individuals.