Fig. 4

Potential role of AhR in inflammatory bowel disease. In inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), a combination of genetic factors and environmental factors leads to decreased intestinal AhR expression and dysbiosis, which in turn reduces the production of AhR ligands by the microbiota. This decreased availability of AhR ligands in the intestine leads to defective AhR activation, which contributes to intestinal barrier and immune response alterations, and amplifies the dysbiosis in a vicious cycle favoring chronic inflammation and consequently IBD