Sunday, November 13, 2016

Study explains how an intestinal microbe protects against other, more dangerous bacteria

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-10/ru-seh100316.php

Public Release: 3-Oct-2016
Study explains how an intestinal microbe protects against other, more dangerous bacteria
Rockefeller University

Antibiotics save millions of lives. But their tendency to kill helpful and harmful bacteria alike, coupled with the growing problem of antibiotic resistance, means that they are not without their downside.

Probiotics consisting of beneficial microorganisms, meanwhile, have the potential to deliver the benefits of antibiotics minus the pitfalls. Yet up until now, evidence of their efficacy has been largely anecdotal, their mechanisms of action poorly understood.

Thanks to a pair of papers recently published in Science and Science Immunology by researchers at The Rockefeller University, however, that is beginning to change.

The studies demonstrate that an enzyme produced by a common intestinal microbe can protect the guts of worms and mammals alike from attack by harmful bacteria, and offer important insights into how it does so. Together, their findings could lead to the development of probiotics for use against such dangerous pathogens as Clostridium difficile, a leading cause of hospital-acquired infections.

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