NOD2-dependent licensing of the microbiota predispose to transmissible inflammation and tumorigenesis in the colon.

Instability in the composition of gut bacterial communities, referred as dysbiosis, has been associated with important human intestinal disorders such as Crohn’s disease and colorectal cancer. Here, we show that dysbiosis coupled to Nod2 or Rip2 deficiency suffices to cause an increased risk for intestinal inflammation and colitis-associated carcinogenesis in mice. Aggravated epithelial lesions and dysplasia upon chemical-induced injury associated with loss of Nod2 or Rip2 can be prevented by antibiotics or anti-IL6R treatment. Nod2-mediated risk for intestinal inflammation and colitis-associated tumorigenesis is communicable through maternally-transmitted microbiota even to wild-type hosts. Disease progression was identified to drive complex NOD2-dependent changes of the colonic-associated microbiota. Reciprocal microbiota transplantation rescues the vulnerability of Nod2-deficient mice to colonic injury. Altogether, our results unveil an unexpected function for NOD2 in shaping a protective assembly of gut microbial communities, providing a rationale for intentional manipulation of genotype-dependent dysbiosis as a causative therapeutic principle in chronic intestinal inflammation.