The Potential Role of Gut Mycobiome in Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Abstract

The human gut is inhabited by diverse microorganisms that play crucial roles in health and disease. Gut microbiota dysbiosis is increasingly considered as a vital factor in the etiopathogenesis of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which is a common functional gastrointestinal disorder with a high incidence all over the world. However, investigations to date are primarily directed to the bacterial community, and the gut mycobiome, another fundamental part of gut ecosystem, has been underestimated. Intestinal fungi have important effects on maintaining gut homeostasis just as bacterial species. In the present article, we reviewed the potential roles of gut mycobiome in the pathogenesis of IBS and the connections between the fungi and existing mechanisms such as chronic low-grade inflammation, visceral hypersensitivity, and brain-gut interactions. Moreover, possible strategies targeted at the gut mycobiome for managing IBS were also described. This review provides a basis for considering the role of the mycobiome in IBS and offers novel treatment strategies for IBS patients; moreover, it adds new dimensions to researches on microorganism.

Mucosal Tuft Cell Density Is Increased in Diarrhea-Predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome Colonic Biopsies

“…Given that the human microbiome includes many other non-bacterial microorganisms such as viruses, fungi, archaea and protozoans; other luminal residents have the potential to contribute to the pathophysiology of this functional bowel disorder. Indeed, the mycobiome differs in IBS patients (35) and viral infection has been linked to increased risk of developing IBS (36). The prevalence of protozoans is also increased in IBS patients (37) with some, such as Dientamoeba fragilis (38) and Giardia intestinalis (39) actually inducing IBS-like symptoms such as abdominal pain and looseness of stools.…”

The Mycobiome in Health and Disease: Emerging Concepts, Methodologies and Challenges

“…In Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), a functional gastrointestinal disease, ITS1based metabarcoding of faecal samples reveals a gut mycobiome dysbiosis with a significant loss of diversity. Saccharomyces and Candida were dominant in IBS and healthy controls, but higher proportions were observed in the former [157]. Visceral hypersensitivity is linked to IBS with fungi implicated in animal models, suggesting that targeted manipulation of the mycobiome may provide scope for therapeutic intervention [158,159].…”

“…Mycobiome signatures clearly differ between hypersensitive and normally sensitive IBS [158]. While these findings are clearly of clinical interest, more compelling evidence and biological validation is required to further clarify mechanistic underpinnings of these early observations [157]. Interestingly, in the oncological setting, antifungal treatment is associated with decreased tumour progression in pancreatic ductal carcinoma, while posttherapeutic repopulation by Malassezia accelerates tumour growth [160].…”

A Brief Review of Edible Coating Materials for the Microencapsulation of Probiotics

“…The consumption of probiotics positively influences the growth of targeted microorganisms in the host gastrointestinal tract, eliminates harmful bacteria or fungi, and boosts the naturally occurring defence actions of the host's immune system. Additionally, it also helps in the treatment for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), gastrointestinal dysbiosis, as for other intestinal disorders [2][3][4]. Most of the known probiotics are Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS), including Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium species, and certain yeast strains such as Saccharomyces boulardii, S. cerevisiae CNCM I-3856, and Lipomyces starkeyi VIT-MN03 [3][4][5][6].…”