Cure8 research brief
Finding reliable non-invasive biomarkers could help distinguish pediatric IBD from functional GI disorders without immediate invasive testing. This study identifies linked microbial and bile-acid features that might serve as candidates for such a panel after validation.
Pediatric patients with suspected IBD or FGID; parents/caregivers; pediatric gastroenterologists; researchers in microbiome and biomarker development.
Researchers analyzed stool from 33 pediatric IBD patients and 28 FGID patients using 16S rRNA sequencing and liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry for bile acids. Children with IBD had lower microbiome alpha diversity, depletion of Firmicutes and the genus Blautia, and enrichment of Proteobacteria and Escherichia-Shigella.
Fecal bile acids in IBD showed higher primary bile acids (for example, cholic acid) and lower secondary bile acids (for example, deoxycholic and lithocholic acids). The authors report correlations linking specific microbes, secondary bile acids, and inflammatory markers.
These differences are presented as candidate non-invasive biomarkers that need independent validation before clinical use.
The report is an open-access observational case-control study using stool sequencing and bile-acid profiling; it proposes candidate biomarkers but does not establish diagnostic performance or clinical utility—external validation is needed.
Review the original publication for the complete reporting, methods, and context.
Funding disclosed by the source: Research Foundation of Capital Institute of Pediatrics, award YCYJ-2025-10
This Cure8 brief is based on source text from the linked article. Cure8 is informational only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
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