The Microbiome Project News and Research

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The human microbiome refers to the entire community of microorganisms that live on or in the human body. More specifically, it refers to all of the genes in these microbes, which include bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and viruses.

Researchers develop GI microbiome modulators to treat prediabetes and diabetes

In adults with prediabetes, a new drug that alters microbial populations and their environment in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract improves glucose tolerance-the body's response to consuming carbohydrates- after four weeks of treatment and without a change in diet.

24 Jun 2014

Specific enzyme helps protect good commensal bacteria from harmful effects of antibiotics

Researchers from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland have discovered that populating the gastrointestinal (GI) tracts of mice with Bacteroides species producing a specific enzyme helps protect the good commensal bacteria from the harmful effects of antibiotics.

13 Jun 2014

New framework for monitoring oral cancer development, progression, recurrence

Each year, approximately 22,000 Americans are diagnosed with oral cancer. The five-year survival rate of 40% in the U.S. is one of the lowest of the major cancers, and it has not improved in the past 40 years.

11 Jun 2014

Synthetic, Enterome partner to study effects of beta-lactam antibiotics on gastrointestinal microflora

Synthetic Biologics, Inc., a developer of novel anti-infective biologic and drug candidates targeting specific pathogens that cause serious infections and diseases, and Enterome Bioscience SA, a pioneer in the development of innovative disease management solutions based on a deep understanding of the gut microbiome, today announced that they have entered into an agreement to conduct metagenomic research on the effects of beta-lactam antibiotics on the gastrointestinal microflora (microbiome) of human patients.

10 Jun 2014

Seres Health closes $10 million Series B financing, signs research collaboration with Mayo Clinic

Seres Health, a clinical-stage therapeutics company developing novel products to treat a host of disease conditions based on scientific findings related to the human microbiome, announced today that it has closed its $10 million Series B financing that included existing investors Flagship Ventures and Enso Ventures, and included new investors, Mayo Clinic, Alexandria Venture Investments, and several private investors. The company has also entered into an exclusive research collaboration with the Mayo Clinic.

9 Jun 2014

Infants exposed to bacterial species in house dust are less likely to develop asthma

Infants exposed to a diverse range of bacterial species in house dust during the first year of life appear to be less likely to develop asthma in early childhood, according to a new study published online on June 6, 2014, in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

9 Jun 2014

American College of Gastroenterology develops new podcast for World Digestive Health Day

For World Digestive Health Day, the American College of Gastroenterology, along with World Gastroenterology Organisation (WGO), observes the 2014 focus on the human gut microbiome and its impact on health and disease. Scientific understanding of the gut microbiome - the diverse and complex microbial community that resides in the intestine - has rapidly evolved in recent years.

31 May 2014

Study: Individuals' diet influences gut microbial diversity

Scientists from The University of Texas at Austin and five other institutions have discovered that the more diverse the diet of a fish, the less diverse are the microbes living in its gut. If the effect is confirmed in humans, it could mean that the combinations of foods people eat can influence the diversity of their gut microbes.

29 May 2014

Biologists show bioelectrical signals control tumors arising from cancer-causing genes, fatty acid

Developmental biologists at Tufts University, using a tadpole model, have shown that bioelectrical signals from distant cells control the incidence of tumors arising from cancer-causing genes and that this process is impacted by levels of a common fatty acid produced by bacteria found in the tadpole and also in humans.

28 May 2014

69% of healthy American adults are infected with 109 strains of human papillomavirus

In what is believed to be the largest and most detailed genetic analysis of its kind, researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center and elsewhere have concluded that 69 percent of healthy American adults are infected with one or more of 109 strains of human papillomavirus (HPV).

21 May 2014

C-section delivery, early antibiotic treatment linked to eosinophilic esophagitis in children

Children delivered by cesarean section and those given antibiotics during early infancy appear more prone to developing allergic inflammation of the esophagus — the muscular tube that connects the mouth to the stomach — according to results of a study by investigators from the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center and Harvard Medical School.

13 May 2014

Navy asks Rice synthetic biologist to tweak gut bacteria for mood, weight control

The motto "no guts, no glory" may need rewriting if Rice University synthetic biologist Jeff Tabor succeeds in his quest to help the Navy create an edible probiotic bacterium that can help protect sailors and marines from obesity and depression.

13 May 2014

Second Genome, Pfizer partner to conduct microbiome research to gain new insights into obesity

Second Genome announced today that it has entered into an agreement with Pfizer Inc. to conduct extensive microbiome research in a large observational study aimed at gaining new insights into obesity and metabolic disease.

2 May 2014

Study suggests that improving newborns' bacterial environment could fend off infections

Mothers give a newborn baby a gift of germs-germs that help to kick-start the infant's immune system. But antibiotics, used to fend off infection, may paradoxically interrupt a newborn's own immune responses, leaving already-vulnerable premature babies more susceptible to dangerous pathogens.

21 Apr 2014

SWHR co-sponsors National Institutes of Health Forum on microbiome and autoimmunity

The Society for Women's Health Research (SWHR®), the leading voice on the study of the biological differences between women and men, is co-sponsoring the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Forum on the Microbiome and Autoimmunity on Thursday, April 24, at the NIH in Bethesda, Md.

17 Apr 2014

Researchers figure out role of birth weight and breastfeeding in long run health outcomes

Lower weight babies and babies who aren't breastfed or not breastfed for long are at greater risk of developing chronic inflammation and related health problems later in life, according to a new study.

15 Apr 2014

Spero Therapeutics enters into antibiotics partnership with Roche

Spero Therapeutics, LLC, a biopharmaceutical company founded to develop novel therapies for treatment of bacterial infections, has entered into an antibiotics partnership with Roche.

9 Apr 2014

MicroBiome Therapeutics to present clinical trial data of NM504 in type 2 diabetes, prediabetes at ICE/ENDO 2014

MicroBiome Therapeutics LLC, today announced that data from the company's clinical trial of microbiome modulator NM504 in development for type 2 diabetes and prediabetes has been accepted for a Poster Preview Presentation at ICE/ENDO 2014, the joint meeting of the International Society of Endocrinology and The Endocrine Society.

8 Apr 2014

Wistar findings suggest link between colon microbiome and genome stability

Colorectal cancer develops in what is probably the most complex environment in the human body, a place where human cells cohabitate with a colony of approximately 10 trillion bacteria, most of which are unknown.

7 Apr 2014

Scientists describe gut bacteria that cause sepsis in preterm infants

Researchers studying intestinal bacteria in newborns have characterized the gut bacteria of premature infants who go on to develop sepsis, a serious and potentially life-threatening condition caused by bacteria in the bloodstream.

19 Mar 2014