Unique alcohol-producing gut bacteria can intoxicate and cause liver disease

Auto-brewery syndrome (ABS) is a very rare condition whereby patients develop high blood alcohol concentrations spontaneously after consuming alcohol-free, high-carbohydrate meals.

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Studying the patient's gut microbiome revealed several highly unique strains of a relatively common bacterial species called Klebsiella pneumonia. Two particular strains of the bacteria were isolated, with the researchers suggesting these had the ability to produce four to six times as much alcohol as strains found in healthy people.

[Antibiotics resulted in partial reversal of liver disease in some patients.]

Much more at: https://newatlas.com/medical/microbiome-alcoh...eria-fatty-liver-disease/

In the Pancreas, Common Fungi May Drive Cancer

The results show that Malassezia was not only abundant in mice that got pancreatic tumors, it was also present in extremely high numbers in samples from pancreatic cancer patients, said Dr. Berk Aykut, a postdoctoral researcher in Dr. Miller’s lab.

Administering an antifungal drug got rid of the fungi in mice and kept tumors from developing. And when the treated mice again received the yeast, their tumors started growing once more — an indication, Dr. Aykut said, that the fungal cells were driving the tumors’ growth. Infecting a control group of mice with different fungi did not accelerate their cancer.

Much more at: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/03/health/pancreatic-cancer-fungi.html

Vaginal-fluid transplants treat incurable condition [bacterial vaginosis] in pilot study

Transplanted vaginal fluids fully restored healthy microbiomes in 4 of 5 women.
Two of the recipients showed long-term BV remission after just one transplant. They reported improvement in symptoms within one week of the procedure and stayed in remission for their follow-up periods, which lasted up to 11.5 months. Two others ended up undergoing three transplants before achieving complete remission through their follow-up periods, which lasted up to 21 months. Genetic analyses suggested that the recipients’ vaginal microbiomes had shifted to look more like the donor communities.

The last recipient only achieved a partial resolution of BV, but her case was complicated by a throat infection that required her to take oral antibiotics after her first transplant. After that treatment, her BV symptoms returned. She underwent another transplant, which improved her symptoms and clinical signs of BV. But, at 6.5 months of follow-up, her vaginal microbial communities looked like a mix of her original community and the donor community. [Two randomized controlled trials are planned elsewhere.]

More at: https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/10/vagin...lide-through-pilot-study/

New evidence suggests a baby’s microbiome forms before birth

“Our study provides strong proof that a complex microbiome is transmitted from the mother to the fetus,” [while in the womb] says Patrick Seed, senior author on the new study. “Unlike other studies relying only on next generation DNA sequencing, we validated our sequencing results with microscopy and culture techniques, to resolve a decades long controversy about the existence of a fetal microbiome.”

Much more at: https://newatlas.com/medical/gut-bacteria-fetal-microbiome-forms-before-birth/

Microbiome-altering Alzheimer’s drug unexpectedly approved in China

In a surprise to many researchers around the world, Chinese authorities recently approved a novel drug claimed to improve cognitive function in patients with Alzheimer’s disease. The drug, derived from a marine algae, is the first new Alzheimer’s drug to reach the market anywhere in the world in almost 20 years, and is suggested to reduce neuroinflammation by modulating a person’s gut microbiome. GV-971, or sodium oligomannate, is derived from a common form of seaweed called brown algae.

The latest announcement from China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has granted the drug “conditional approval”, meaning it is to be fast-tracked to market based on positive early Phase 3 trial results. The “conditional approval” requires ongoing studies to verify efficacy and safety, however, it can now move to open market sales in China within the next month or two.

Much more at: https://newatlas.com/medical/china-approves-o...ia-alzheimers-microbiome/