Harnessing the microbiota for therapeutic purposes

Abstract

The myriads of microorganisms colonizing the human host (microbiome) affect virtually every aspect of its physiology in health and disease. The past decade witnessed unprecedented advances in microbiome research. The field rapidly transitioned from descriptive studies to deep mechanistic insights into host‐microbiome interactions. This offers the opportunity for microbiome‐targeted therapeutic manipulation. Currently, several strategies of microbiome‐targeted interventions are intensively explored. Best evidence from human randomized clinical trials is available for fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT). However, patient eligibility as well as long‐term efficacy and safety are not sufficiently defined. Therefore, there is currently no officially approved indication for FMT. Probiotics (live microorganisms) have long been discussed as a means to aid human health but have yielded varying results. Emerging techniques utilizing microbiota‐targeted diets, small microbial molecules, recombinant bacteriophages, and precise control of strain abundance recently yielded promising results but require further investigation. The rapid technological progress of “omics” tools spurs advances in personalized medicine. Understanding and integration of interindividual microbiome variability holds potential to promote personalized preventive and therapeutic approaches. Emerging evidence points towards the microbiome as an important player having an impact on transplantation outcomes. Microbiome‐targeted interventions have potential to aid against the many challenges faced by transplant recipients.

The Evolving Landscape of Fecal Microbial Transplantation

“…The dynamics of microbial strains in engraftment processes and species interdependency add another compounding level of factors that are relevant to FMT efficacy. Understanding the diversity and variability of individual microbiome differences is of vital importance in FMT [ 132 ].…”

The Interplay Between Gut Microbiota and miRNAs in Cardiovascular Diseases

“…Due to recent discoveries, it is now clear that gut microbiota is very responsive to the influence of probiotics, regulating general health and organic disorders, including CVDs, especially atherosclerosis and its acute consequences (coronary heart disease and stroke) ( 9 ) and hypertension ( 26 ). Some studies have shown that probiotics can modify the levels of metabolites, DNA, and components of the immune system, can activate immune cells, stimulate the production of immunoglobulins and regulate cytokines, demonstrating anti-inflammatory and immune effects in the host ( 134 , 136 ). However, the connection between probiotics, miRNA, gut microbiota and organic diseases is still not well known, being a relatively novel field of research that needs further investigations.…”

Probiotics and MicroRNA: Their Roles in the Host–Microbe Interactions

“…Probiotics may affect the immune system by changing the levels of metabolites, components, and DNA. They have been shown to activate immune cells, increase the production of immunoglobulins, and regulate cytokines (Khoruts, 2018;Sanders et al, 2019;Liwinski and Elinav, 2020;Yan and Polk, 2020). Several studies have demonstrated that these probioticderived factors can suppress intestinal inflammation via targeting toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling (Gómez-Llorente et al, 2010).…”