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Gut microbiota: a new way to take your vitamins

IBD is associated with disruptions to resident microbial populations and inflammatory immune responses; however, little is known about how bacteria influence pathogenic immunity. New research identifies microbially produced ascorbate as a potential drug target to ameliorate disease by inhibiting inflammatory T cell function through altered cellular metabolism.

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Fig. 1: Putative mechanism for ascorbate-mediated CD4+ T cell function inhibition.

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Correspondence to June L. Round.

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Gomes-Neto, J.C., Round, J.L. Gut microbiota: a new way to take your vitamins. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol 15, 521–522 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41575-018-0044-3

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