Contributions of the microbial hydrogen economy to colonic homeostasis

Colonic gases are among the most tangible features of digestion, yet physicians are typically unable to offer long-term relief from clinical complaints of excessive gas. Studies characterizing colonic gases have linked changes in volume or composition with bowel disorders and shown hydrogen gas (H(2)), methane, hydrogen sulphide, and carbon dioxide to be by-products of the interplay between H(2)-producing fermentative bacteria and H(2) consumers (reductive acetogens, methanogenic archaea and sulphate-reducing bacteria [SRB]). Clinically, H(2) and methane measured in breath can indicate lactose and glucose intolerance, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth and IBS. Methane levels are increased in patients with constipation or IBS. Hydrogen sulphide is a by-product of H(2) metabolism by SRB, which are ubiquitous in the colonic mucosa. Although higher hydrogen sulphide and SRB levels have been detected in patients with IBD, and to a lesser extent in colorectal cancer, this colonic gas might have beneficial effects. Moreover, H(2) has been shown to have antioxidant properties and, in the healthy colon, physiological H(2) concentrations might protect the mucosa from oxidative insults, whereas an impaired H(2) economy might facilitate inflammation or carcinogenesis. Therefore, standardized breath gas measurements combined with ever-improving molecular methodologies could provide novel strategies to prevent, diagnose or manage numerous colonic disorders.