P’ng Loke, PhD, a parasitologist and associate professor at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City, and colleagues fed 10 to 15 helminth eggs to mice with Nod2 gene deficiencies associated with IBD and other immune disorders. Then the researchers used 16S rDNA sequencing to evaluate the gut microbiota of the infected mice for Bacteroides, which have been linked to a higher risk for IBD, and anti-inflammatory Clostridia. Next, the researchers evaluated the gut microbiota in 75 indigenous residents of a rural area of Malaysia.
Here are five points:
1. The researchers found that Bacteroides decreased by up to 1,000 times in the infected mice, whereas Clostridia increased by 10 times.
2. Many IBD symptoms like intestinal bleeding and ulceration had resolved.
3. The indigenous residents in a rural area of Malaysia had significantly more Clostridia and fewer Bacteroides in their gut microbiota as compared with 20 residents of a nearby urban area, Kuala Lumpur.
4. The residents in the urban area of Kuala Lumpur who had received de-worming treatment had fewer Clostridia and more Bacteroides.
5. In conclusion, the researchers’ data supports their hypothesis that helminth infection promotes the expansion of Clostridiales communities that out-compete Bacteroidales communities.
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