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Review
. 2025 Apr 30:16:1594224.
doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2025.1594224. eCollection 2025.

Potential applications and mechanisms of natural products in mucosal-related diseases

Wang Lin  1   2 , Xie Ruishi  1   2 , Xu Caijiao  1   2 , Luo Haoming  1   2 , Hua Xuefeng  3 , Yao Jiyou  3 , Lu Minqiang  3 , Zhou Shuo  1   2 , Zhu Ming  1   2 , Li Dongyang  1   2 , Fang Xiaoxue  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Potential applications and mechanisms of natural products in mucosal-related diseases

Wang Lin et al. Front Immunol. .

Abstract

The mucosal barrier serves as a crucial defense against external pathogens and allergens, being widely distributed across the respiratory, gastrointestinal, urogenital tracts, and oral cavity. Its disruption can lead to various diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease, asthma, urinary tract infections, and oral inflammation. Current mainstream treatments for mucosa-associated diseases primarily involve glucocorticoids and immunosuppressants, but their long-term use may cause adverse effects. Therefore, the development of safer and more effective therapeutic strategies has become a focus of research. Natural products, with their multi-target and multi-system regulatory advantages, offer a promising avenue for the treatment of mucosal diseases. This review summarizes the potential applications of natural products in diseases of mucosal barrier dysfunction through mechanisms such as immune modulation, inflammation inhibition, tight junction protein restoration, and gut microbiota regulation, with the aim of providing insights for the exploration of novel therapeutic strategies.

Keywords: gut microbiota modulation; immune regulation; inflammation inhibition; mucous barrier; natural products.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The structure of the intestinal mucosal barrier.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The composition and function of the respiratory barrier.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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