Role of a probiotic strain in the modulation of gut microbiota and cytokines in inflammatory bowel disease.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of a probiotic strain Bacillus clausii UBBC-07 on gut microbiota and cytokines in IBD patients. METHOD: Patients were randomly allocated to either placebo or probiotic Bacillus clausii UBBC-07 for four weeks along with the standard medical treatment (SMT). Enrolled patients were evaluated before and after intervention for presence of the given probiotic, change in gut microbiota, change in serum cytokines, serotonin and dopamine, symptoms of disease, physical, behavioral and psychological parameters. RESULTS: Probiotic strain Bacillus clausii UBBC-07 showed good survival in IBD patients in the treatment group (p < 0.01) without any reported adverse event. Metagenomic analysis showed that the given probiotic strain was able to modulate the gut microbiota in treated group. Phylum Firmicutes was increased and phylum Bacteroidetes was decreased in the probiotic treated group. A significant increase was observed in the abundance of anaerobic bacterial genera Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium and Faecalibacterium in the probiotic treated group (p < 0.01) as compared to placebo group. Significant increase was observed in IL-10 (p < 0.05) and variable decrease in the secretion of IL-1ß, TNF- α, IL-6, IL -17 and IL -23 in probiotic treated group. In the treatment group a significant decrease in the symptoms of IBD and improvement in the psychological parameter to various degrees was noted. CONCLUSION: These results indicated that probiotic strain B clausii UBBC-07 affected the gut microbiota and cytokine secretion and shown efficacy in IBD patients.

A metagenomic assessment of gut microbiota in Indian colon cancer patients.

Background: Gut microbiota plays an important role in the development of different diseases including colorectal cancer. The geography, lifestyle, and dietary habits of Indians are different from Western world, thus microbiome studies of Western population could not be extrapolated to their Indian counterparts. Method: Therefore, we have conducted a study on gut microbiota in Indian healthy subjects and patients of colon cancer using 16S ribosomal RNA Amplicon sequencing. Operational taxonomic units were calculated for different bacterial taxon including phylum, class, order, family, and genus level. Results: Observed results indicated a considerable difference in the bacterial diversity in both the groups. Phylum Firmicutes was significantly dominated in both the groups followed by Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, and Proteobacteria which clearly indicates the dominance of phylum Firmicutes in Indian population. Phylum Firmicutes and Actinobacteria were significantly abundant in the healthy group while phylum Bacteroidetes in the colon cancer group. Bacterial genera Megamonas, Megasphaera, Mitsuokella, and Streptococcus were significantly abundant in the healthy group and Veillonella, Prevotella, and Eubacterium in the colon cancer group. Bacterial genus Bradyrhizobium was present in the healthy group and Alistipes, Coprococcus, Dorea, and Rhodococcus were present in the colon cancer group but absent in the healthy group. Conclusion: There was a considerable difference in bacterial diversity in both the study groups indicating dysbiosis in the colon cancer group.

Recent discovery and development on SARS-CoV-2: A review of current literature.

The origin and spread of current novel coronavirus had raised serious concerns among stakeholders around the globe. Different speculations that may unfold the mystery in the future are taking roots, but now there is no globally acceptable opinion about the origin and spread of this novel coronavirus. It is reported that Wuhan city of Hubei Province of central China was the epicenter of this outbreak of novel coronavirus. However, initial inadequate preventive measures allowed the infection to cross the borders of China and that pulls the world into drastic public health and economic crisis. This coronavirus disease now named as COVID-19 by World Health Organization (WHO) and the responsible coronavirus is named as "severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)." The spread of SARS-CoV-2 is alarming even after 5 months of inception and WHO further warns the world to be prepared for more intense spread of COVID-19. Different diagnostic tools to detect SARS-CoV-2 are being used around the globe, but the identification of asymptomatic carriers of the disease is a serious challenge in countering the COVID-19 pandemic. There is no specific treatment available, only preventive, symptomatic, and supportive treatments are being used for clinical management of COVID-19. The available knowledge is limited, therefore, any escalation of information on the disease will help to combat this global challenge of COVID-19. In this review, we have discussed and summarized the available multi-factorial information and recent updates on the SARS-CoV-2 which can help support future research and may help in the strategic management of the current COVID-19 pandemic. The articles available online before June 30, 2020, on bioRxiv, medRxiv, ChemRxiv, Google Scholar, and PubMed have been assessed for the compilation of this review. Information on the official portal of WHO, CDC, ICMR, etc., were also assessed and used with due credit.

Gut microbial diversity in health and disease: experience of healthy Indian subjects, and colon carcinoma and inflammatory bowel disease patients.

Background: The intestinal microbiota, through complex interactions with the gut mucosa, play a key role in the pathogenesis of colon carcinoma and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The disease condition and dietary habits both influence gut microbial diversity. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the gut microbial profile of healthy subjects and patients with colon carcinoma and IBD. Healthy subjects included 'Indian vegetarians/lactovegetarians', who eat plant produce, milk and milk products, and 'Indian non-vegetarians', who eat plant produce, milk and milk products, certain meats and fish, and the eggs of certain birds and fish. 'Indian vegetarians' are different from 'vegans', who do not eat any foods derived wholly or partly from animals, including milk products. Design: Stool samples were collected from healthy Indian vegetarians/lactovegetarians and non-vegetarians, and colon cancer and IBD patients. Clonal libraries of 16S ribosomal DNA (rDNA) of bacteria were created from each sample. Clones were sequenced from one representative sample of each group. Approximately 500 white colonies were picked at random from each sample and 100 colonies were sequenced after amplified rDNA restriction analysis. Results: The dominant phylum from the healthy vegetarian was Firmicutes (34%), followed by Bacteroidetes (15%). The balance was reversed in the healthy non-vegetarian (Bacteroidetes 84%, Firmicutes 4%; ratio 21:1). The colon cancer and IBD patients had higher percentages of Bacteroidetes (55% in both) than Firmicutes (26% and 12%, respectively) but lower Bacteroidetes:Firmicutes ratios (3.8:1 and 2.4:1, respectively) than the healthy non-vegetarian. Bacterial phyla of Verrucomicrobiota and Actinobacteria were detected in 23% and 5% of IBD and colon patients, respectively. Conclusions: Ribosomal Database Project profiling of gut flora in this study population showed remarkable differences, with unique diversity attributed to different diets and disease conditions.