Microbial metabolites in tumor epigenetic regulation
Wangzheqi Zhang , Haoling Zhang , Yan Liao , Shuya Jiang , Haolong Zhang , Chenwei Huang , Zhijing Song , Rui Zhao , Ping Lu , Xiaohong Kang , Eryan Kong , Yalin Zhu , Wei Wang , Xuesong Liu , Yisheng Chen , Zhiwen Luo , Zhaoyu Li , Di Wang , Na Xing , Yadong Guo , Jingjing Zhang , Xiaojing Wang , Wenyi Wang , Mowaffaq Adam , Bakiah Shaharuddin , Muhamad Yusri Musa , Doblin Sandai , Chenglong Zhu , Aimin Jiang , Peng Luo , Zhijie Zhao , Zui Zou
iMeta ›› 2026, Vol. 5 ›› Issue (1) : e70115
With an increasing global cancer burden, the regulatory function of the human microbiome and its metabolites in tumor epigenetics has garnered significant interest. Microbial metabolites are not merely passive byproducts but serve as signaling molecules and epigenetic modulators, contributing to tumor progression through multiple overlapping pathways. Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) such as butyrate directly inhibit histone deacetylases to reactivate tumor suppressor genes, while secondary bile acids (BAs) induce gene silencing via DNA methylation remodeling by altering the FXR/TGR5 signaling pathway. Folate and vitamin B12 serve as substrates for DNA and histone methylation through one-carbon metabolism. A complex bidirectional feedback loop exists between microbial metabolism and tumor epigenetics: reprogramming driven by hypoxia or oncogenes alters metabolite flux, generating molecules such as lactate and succinate that not only remodel chromatin and the tumor microenvironment (TME) but also selectively promote the growth of metabolically adapted microbial species, thereby reinforcing epigenetic dysregulation. Despite growing mechanistic insights, establishing causality and correlating spatiotemporal dynamics and dose responses within the highly heterogeneous TME remain major challenges. Data integration across multi-omics remains limited by methodological and computational constraints. Resolving these issues will be critical for understanding the microbe–metabolite–epigenetic axis and advancing personalized precision oncology.
bidirectional feedback loop / epigenetic modulation / microbial metabolites / precision oncology / tumor epigenetics / tumor microenvironment
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2026 The Author(s). iMeta published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of iMeta Science.
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| 〈 |
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〉 |