The Human Microbiome and Gut Microbiota

The human microbiome is defined as the microbial community (bacteria, fungi, viruses and protozoa) present in the human body. The human microbiome aids in the maintenance and development of the immune system and metabolism among other body functions.

The densest and most diverse microbial community has been found in the human gastrointestinal tract. There is also increasing evidence that the gut microbiota plays an important role in protecting the host from disease. Clinical and scientific studies indicate that disturbances to the gut microbiota, often referred to as “dysbiosis,”¹ may be involved in infectious, inflammatory, metabolic, liver and neurological diseases. Until recently, antibiotics were a common way to fight different diseases – now, the opportunity to restore gut microbes may provide an effective and durable treatment.

Understanding the Human Microbiome and Gut Microbiota is Critical

Advances in knowledge about the human microbiome may open the possibility of additional microbiota-based drug therapies for challenging diseases. Large governmental research initiatives including the Human Microbiome Project² in the U.S. and the MetaHIT Project³ in Europe accelerated research on the human microbiome. Scientists are quickly learning the details of how microbial populations interact and the roles they play in health and disease.

Part of the Rebiotix MRT™ drug platform is to constantly contribute to the growing body of evidence that the microbiome, particularly in the gut, has an important role to play in fighting disease. Our goal is to incorporate scientific research into our clinical programs to help further understand the impact of dysbiosis and microbiome restoration in patient populations with unmet medical needs.

The Invisible Universe Of The Human Microbiome

This video by NPR provides a guided tour of the human microbiome to understand the individual roles of microbes in addition to the synergy of microbes working together as an ecosystem in our bodies. The gut microbiome is the most complex, diverse and important to the entity of the human microbiome.

Reference

1. Carding S, Verbeke K, Vipond DT, Corfe BM, Owen LJ. Dysbiosis of the gut microbiota in disease. Microb Ecol Health Dis. 2015;26:26191. Published 2015 Feb 2. doi:10.3402/mehd.v26.26191
2. Turnbaugh, P., Ley, R., Hamady, M. et al. The Human Microbiome Project. Nature 449, 804–810 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature06244
3. Qin, J., Li, R., Raes, J. et al. A human gut microbial gene catalogue established by metagenomic sequencing. Nature 464, 59–65 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature08821