ArticleNature microbiology2023
Microbiota-derived tryptophan catabolites mediate the chemopreventive effects of statins on colorectal cancer.
Article in Nature microbiology, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 131 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
131 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 178 citations in OpenAlex.
- Preclinical efficacy and mechanisms of statin-loaded polymeric nanocapsules: a meta-analysis of tumor lipid metabolism inhibition.Scientific reports · 2025Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Trial
- Multi-omics analysis of saccharomyces boulardii supplementation reveals coordinated microbiome, metabolic, and immune signaling changes accompanying tumor suppression.Gut microbes · 2026Article
- IntratumorGut microbes · 2026Article
- Enteric ChAT-Expressing Neurons Mediate the Protective Effect of Lactobacillus plantarum in Inflammatory Bowel Disease.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- Oral and gut microbiota profiles in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer with varying responses to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy.Functional & integrative genomics · 2026Observational
- Chronic Stress Promotes Gastric Cancer Metastasis by Inducing Microbiota-Associated Kynurenine Accumulation and Macrophage Remodeling.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- Tryptophan metabolism in tumor microenvironment and therapeutic implications.Journal of advanced research · 2026Review
- Tryptophan metabolism in colorectal cancer: From mechanistic insights to novel therapeutic strategies.Clinical and translational medicine · 2026Review
- YAP1‑mediated cytoplasmic‑nuclear translocation of SREBP2 promotes colorectal cancer via regulation of cholesterol metabolism.International journal of oncology · 2026Article
- Microbial Signals in Cancer: Dissecting Host-Microbiota-Tumor Interactions and Potential Therapeutic Strategy.MedComm · 2026Review
- Advances in Exercise-Mediated Regulation of the Gut Microbiota via the Muscle-Gut Axis: Implications for Tumor Immunity and Treatment Responses.Metabolites · 2026Review
- Grain proteins ameliorate glucose metabolism disorders by activating intestinal AhR and the hepatic NLK/FOXO1 pathway via gut microbiota-derived indole metabolites.Journal of advanced research · 2026Article
- USF2-Mediated APOE-Cholesterol Signaling Promotes CTC Clustering and Metastasis in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Sterol regulatory element‑binding proteins: Master regulators of lipid metabolic reprogramming in cancer and emerging therapeutic targets (Review).Oncology reports · 2026Review
- Oral probiotic delivery-based therapeutic strategies for inflammatory bowel disease.Asian journal of pharmaceutical sciences · 2026Review
- Bidirectional Modulation of the Tumor Immune Microenvironment by Gut Microbiota-Derived Indoles: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Potential.FASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology · 2026Review
- Insights into the Relevance of the Interaction between Colorectal Cancer and Gut Microbiota-Derived Metabolites.Journal of cancer prevention · 2026Review
- Engineered probioticScience advances · 2026Article
71 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
25 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Epidemiological studies have indicated an association between statin use and reduced incidence of colorectal cancer (CRC), and work in preclinical models has demonstrated a potential chemopreventive effect. Statins are also associated with reduced dysbiosis in the gut microbiome, yet the role of the gut microbiome in the protective effect of statins in CRC is unclear. Here we validated the chemopreventive role of statins by retrospectively analysing a cohort of patients who underwent colonoscopies. This was confirmed in preclinical models and patient cohorts, and we found that reduced tumour burden was partly due to statin modulation of the gut microbiota. Specifically, the gut commensal Lactobacillus reuteri was increased as a result of increased microbial tryptophan availability in the gut after atorvastatin treatment. Our in vivo studies further revealed that L. reuteri administration suppressed colorectal tumorigenesis via the tryptophan catabolite, indole-3-lactic acid (ILA). ILA exerted anti-tumorigenic effects by downregulating the IL-17 signalling pathway. This microbial metabolite inhibited T helper 17 cell differentiation by targeting the nuclear receptor, RAR-related orphan receptor γt (RORγt). Together, our study provides insights into an anti-cancer mechanism driven by statin use and suggests that interventions with L. reuteri or ILA could complement chemoprevention strategies for CRC.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.