Deutschlandfunk Features Gut Fungi Research with Insights from Microverse PI Bernhard Hube
On May 2, 2025, German national radio broadcaster Deutschlandfunk highlighted a recent Science publication in its “Forschung aktuell” program, focusing on a surprising ally in liver health: the intestinal fungus Fusarium foetens. The study, led by a research team from China, found that this gut-residing fungus produces a metabolite that can slow the progression of liver disease in a mouse model.
Prof. Dr. Bernhard Hube, Principal Investigator at the Clsuter of Excellence "Balance of the Microverse" and researcher at the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (Leibniz-HKI), was interviewed for the feature. Hube, an internationally recognized expert on fungal pathogens such as Candida albicans, provided commentary on the broader implications of the findings.
While fungi make up only a minor portion of the gut microbiome, Hube noted that their potential influence is often underestimated. “Fungal cells are about 100 times larger than bacterial cells,” he explained. “This suggests that fungi may have a greater impact on the metabolic capabilities of the microbiome than previously assumed.”
The study identified a fungal compound that alleviated liver inflammation and disease progression, emphasizing the need to go beyond sequencing in microbiome research. “Genetic analysis can tell us which organisms are present,” said Hube, “but it doesn’t tell us what metabolites they’re producing. To understand function, we have to study these substances directly.”
The findings also challenge the common perception of gut fungi as mere pathogens. Hube stressed the potential for symbiotic interactions: “Why should it be any different in humans than in nature? Many fungi live in mutually beneficial relationships with plants and animals. We just haven’t explored this enough in humans yet.”
Listen to the full interview (in German) via the Deutschlandfunk audio library
Read the study in Science (1 May 2025, Vol. 388, Issue 67): A symbiotic filamentous gut fungus ameliorates MASH via a secondary metabolite–CerS6–ceramide axis