Bajaj JS, et al. - Via collecting skin swabs at 7 sites and blood and stool samples from 20 healthy people and 50 patients with cirrhosis, researchers studied alterations in skin microbiota of patients with cirrhosis and their correlation with intestinal microbiota and modulators of itch. In patients with cirrhosis with vs without itching, correlation networks between serum levels of bile acids (BAs) and skin microbiomes were compared. At all skin sites, the composition of microbiomes differed between controls and patients with cirrhosis and between patients with compensated vs decompensated cirrhosis. Alterations in skin microbiome of patients with cirrhosis (in Gammaproteobacteria, Streptococcaceae, and Staphylococcaceae) were identified-particularly in patients with decompensation; fecal microbiomes of patients with cirrhosis had a higher relative abundance of Gammaproteobacteria vs controls. These particular microbial taxa were related to itching intensity and itch modulators, like serum levels of BAs and autotaxin.