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Copyright: ©Author(s) 2026. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. No commercial re-use. See permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
World J Gastroenterol. Mar 21, 2026; 32(11): 115846
Published online Mar 21, 2026. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v32.i11.115846
Research progress on comorbidity between gastrointestinal and pulmonary diseases from the perspective of the gut-lung axis
Hao-Jun Huang, Pan-Pan Liu, De-Feng Dong
Hao-Jun Huang, School of Nursing, Yanbian University, Yanji 133000, Jilin Province, China
Pan-Pan Liu, Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Shanghai Pudong New Area Gongli Hospital, Shanghai 200315, China
De-Feng Dong, School of Graduate Education, Shandong Sport University, Jinan 250102, Shandong Province, China
Co-first authors: Hao-Jun Huang and Pan-Pan Liu.
Author contributions: Huang HJ and Liu PP contributed equally to this work as co-first authors of this manuscript; Huang HJ, Liu PP and Dong DF contributed to writing the original draft; Huang HJ contributed to supervision, project administration, funding acquisition, reviewing, editing, and conceptualization; All authors approved the submitted version.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Corresponding author: Hao-Jun Huang, School of Nursing, Yanbian University, No. 977 Gongyuan Road, Yanji 133000, Jilin Province, China. hy86382211@163.com
Received: October 27, 2025
Revised: December 2, 2025
Accepted: January 14, 2026
Published online: March 21, 2026
Processing time: 140 Days and 17.5 Hours
Core Tip

Core Tip: The gut-lung axis represents a bidirectional communication network that links the gastrointestinal and respiratory systems through microbial, immune, and metabolic pathways. This review synthesized recent advances in understanding how gut dysbiosis, microbial translocation, immune dysregulation, and epigenetic modifications contribute to gastrointestinal-pulmonary comorbidities. We highlighted key clinical phenotypes and explored emerging therapeutic strategies, including microbiota-targeted interventions, metabolite supplementation, and immune modulation. Future efforts should emphasize multi-omics integration, organoid-based models, and artificial intelligence-driven predictive analytics to advance precision medicine anchored in the gut-lung axis.