The first findings from an ongoing study of the microbiomes of patients and volunteers at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick were published in the scientific journal Molecular Biomedicine.
The study, which began in May 2020, in the early days of the pandemic, was designed to reset the microbiome because many patients with COVID-19 complained of digestive problems – both during the acute stages of their illness and during recovery.
“We wanted to gain a deeper understanding by looking at samples that would give us an indication of the state of the human gut microbiome,” said Martin BlaserHenry Rutgers Director of the Human Microbiome at Rutgers University, director of the Rutgers Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine (CABM), and author of the study.
“We found that while there were differences between people with and without COVID-19, the biggest difference compared to others was seen in those who had been given antibiotics.”
According to Blaser, who is also a professor of medicine, pathology and laboratory medicine at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, it was common practice to treat COVID-19 patients with antibiotics early in the pandemic, before vaccines were introduced. and other antiviral treatments to control possible secondary infections.
According to Blaser, humans have significant and varied populations of microorganisms. The colon has the highest concentration of these bacteria, although they are also present in the digestive tract, skin and other organs. The microbiome interacts with metabolism, the immune system, and the central nervous system to influence human health, as researchers like Blaser have shown in recent decades.
The microbiome has many different functions. “One is to protect the human body from invading pathogens, whether they’re bacteria, viruses or fungi,” Blaser said. “It goes deep into evolution, maybe a billion years of evolution.”
Medical problems often arise when the balance between beneficial and pathogenic microbes in the human microbiome is disrupted, a condition known as dysbiosis.
By counting bacterial populations from stool samples collected from 60 individuals, the researchers were able to study the microbiomes. Twenty patients with COVID-19, twenty healthy donors and twenty participants recovered from COVID-19 formed the study group. When they compared the microbiomes of infected patients with healthy and recovered patients, they found significant variations in the populations of 55 different bacterial species.
To determine the long-term impact of COVID-19 on specific microbiomes, the Rutgers researchers plan to continue testing and monitoring the microbiomes of study participants.
“Further patient studies will increase understanding of the role of the gut microbiome in the progression and recovery of COVID-19,” Blaser said. “These findings may help identify microbial targets and probiotic supplements to improve treatment for COVID-19.”
HT
Source: ANI
Source: The Nordic Page