Immune-Metabolite Axis: How Microbial and Host Byproducts Drive Inflammation

Sunday, October 26, 2025

10:30 AM – 11:30 AM Central Time

Moderator(s)

Monica Guma, MD, PhD

UCSD
La Jolla, California, United States

Disclosure(s): Abbvie: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Andras Perl, MD, PhD

SUNY
Syracuse, New York, United States

Disclosure information not submitted.

Session Coordinator(s)

CJ

Caroline Jefferies, PhD

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Beverly Hills, CA, United States

Disclosure(s): Amgen: Stock options or bond holdings in a for-profit corporation or self-directed pension plan (Ongoing); Eli Lilly: Stock options or bond holdings in a for-profit corporation or self-directed pension plan (Ongoing)

In the gut, the microbial repertoire contributes to many aspects of the host's health, including metabolism, immunity, and behavior. Unsurprisingly, microbial imbalance is associated with disease, particularly diseases such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and spondylitis. This session will provide updates on the surprising ways the host microbiome communicates with the immune system to regulate disease and treatment outcomes in inflammatory and rheumatic disease.

Learning Objectives:

Identify metabolic pathways shared by host cells and microbiota
Discuss how the host and microbiome communicate with and influence each other
Debate how enzymes, metabolites, and microbiota can be targeted for treatment of rheumatic disease

Presentations:

10:30 AM – 11:00 AM Central Time

Microbioal Metabolite That Regulates Sepsis
Speaker: Robert Keskey, MD, PhD – University of Chicago
11:00 AM – 11:30 AM Central Time

Therapeutic Approaches to Treat Rheumatoid Arthritis Using Short-Chain Fatty Acids
Speaker: Renuka Nayak, MD, PhD – University of California, San Francisco (UCSF)