A study carried out in collaboration with the University of Birmingham has used an innovative approach to identify thousands of antibiotic resistance genes found in bacteria that inhabit the human gut. The human gut is home to trillions of microorganisms, mainly bacteria. Most of these are sensitive to antibiotics, but a significant number of bacteria in the human gut have ...

The benefits of antibiotics to both human and animal health are undisputed. However, as microbes have become increasingly resistant to antimicrobials and other drugs, scientists have become interested in new solutions to the growing superbug crisis, including the use of defensive microbes and fecal transplants. In new research, Oxford University scientists have developed a lab-based approach, creating positive co-dependent relationships ...

A new study indicates that the kinds of microbes living in the gut influence the severity and recurrence of parasitic worm infections in developing countries. The findings, by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, suggest that manipulating the gut’s microbial communities may protect against intestinal parasites, which affect more than 1 billion people worldwide. The study ...

As fecal matter transplants (FMTs) continue to be more widely adopted, it is critical to have an appropriate regulatory framework in place, authors of this Policy Forum emphasize. They go on to outline key areas for improvement, compared to current regulatory approaches. The transfer of stool from one healthy donor to a recipient for re­current Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is ...