The gut microbiome (GM) has been implicated in a vast number of human pathologies and has become a focus of oncology research over the past 5 years. The normal gut microbiota imparts specific function in host nutrient metabolism, xenobiotic and drug metabolism, maintenance of structural integrity of the gut mucosal barrier, immunomodulation and protection against pathogens. Strong evidence is emerging to support the effects of the GM on the development of some malignancies but also on responses to cancer therapies, most notably, immune checkpoint inhibition. Tools for manipulating the GM including dietary modification, probiotics and faecal microbiota transfer (FMT) are in development. Current understandings of the many complex interrelationships between the GM, cancer, the immune system, nutrition and medication…
Category: Immunity
Ketogenic Diets Alter Gut Microbiome in Humans, Mice
Study Suggests Potential Anti-Inflammatory Properties of Ketone Bodies Via Effects on Gut Microbial Ecosystems
Low-carb, high-fat ketogenic diets, which have attracted public interest in recent years for their proposed benefits in lowering inflammation and promoting weight loss and heart health, have a dramatic impact on the microbes residing in the human gut, collectively referred to as the microbiome, according to a new UC San Francisco study of a small cohort of volunteer subjects.
Additional research in mice showed that so-called ketone bodies, a molecular byproduct that gives the ketogenic diet its name, directly impact the gut microbiome in ways that may ultimately suppress inflammation, suggesting evidence for potential benefits of ketone bodies as a therapy for autoimmune disorders affecting the gut.
In ketogenic diets, carbohydrate consumption…
Gut bacteria’s interactions with immune system mapped
Cell atlas could reveal why some gut diseases affect specific areas
The first detailed cell atlas of the immune cells and gut bacteria within the human colon has been created by researchers. The study from the Wellcome Sanger Institute and collaborators revealed different immune niches, showing changes in the bacterial microbiome and immune cells throughout the colon. As part of the Human Cell Atlas initiative to map every human cell type, these results will enable new studies into diseases which affect specific regions of the colon, such as ulcerative colitis and colorectal cancer.
Published today in Nature Immunology, this study revealed the interaction between the microbiome and our immune cells. These results form…
Caloric restriction mimetics enhance anti-tumor efficacy
We’re happy to announce that the Seerave Fellow Dr. Jonathan Pol published part of his work entitled “A synergistic triad of chemotherapy, immune checkpoint inhibitors, and caloric restriction mimetics eradicates tumors in mice” in the journal OncoImmunology.
The lab of Professor Guido Kroemeber has recently shown that chemotherapy with agents inducing immunogenic cell death (ICD), such as anthracyclines (e.g. mitoxantrone) or the platinum salt oxaliplatin, can be advantageously combined with fasting or caloric restriction mimetics (CRMs) to reach a better control of tumor growth (1-3). The antitumor activity of the treatment depended on immune actors, particularly on CD8+ T cells. Among these CRMs, Jonathan Pol was particularly interested in further studying hydroxycitrate (HC) and spermidine (SPD). In this follow up study, Jonathan Pol and…
Human microbiome-derived bacterial strains with antitumor activity
Vedanta Biosciences, a clinical-stage company developing a new category of therapies for immune-mediated diseases based on rationally defined consortia of human microbiome-derived bacteria, today announced a publication in Nature reporting a newly discovered mechanism underlying antitumor immunity that involves human microbiota-driven induction of interferon-gamma-producing (IFNy+) CD8+ T cell accumulation in the gut and tumors.
Led by Vedanta’s scientific co-founder Kenya Honda, M.D., Ph.D., of Keio University School of Medicine, the research also led to the identification and selection of a defined consortium of human microbiome-derived bacterial strains that harnesses this mechanism of antitumor activity and cooperatively potentiates responses to checkpoint inhibitor therapies and immune challenges in general. Based on this research, Vedanta is advancing VE800, a proprietary clinical candidate designed to enhance immune responses…
Gut microbiome regulates the intestinal immune system
A new study in mice unveils the role of vitamin A in immune system regulation, a finding that could assist in developing treatments for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases as well as vitamin A deficiency.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Scientists have long known that bacteria in the intestines, also known as the microbiome, perform a variety of useful functions for their hosts, such as breaking down dietary fiber in the digestive process and making vitamins K and B7.
Yet a new study unveils another useful role the microbiome plays. A team of researchers from Brown University found that in mice, the gut microbiome regulates the host’s immune system — so that rather than the host’s defense system attacking these…
Gut bacteria influence the progression of multiple myeloma
By interacting with the immune system, some types of gut bacteria can influence the progression of multiple myeloma, a tumor that affects the bone marrow causing pain, anemia and bone fragility.
The discovery, limited so far to the animal model of the disease, is published today in Nature Communications by the team of Matteo Bellone, head of Cellular immunology Unit at IRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele. The study, supported by AIRC – The Italian Association for Cancer Research – is among the first to trace a direct link between intestinal microbiota and a tumor located in a different organ, thus demonstrating the capability of these bacteria to interact with the whole organism. Moreover, researchers identified a biological marker that could…
Double agents: Vessels that help cancer spread can also boost ...
Scientists from Switzerland and the US have shown that lymphatic vessels can enable both metastasis and T-cell invasion, opening new paths for cancer immunotherapy.
Every meal triggers inflammation
When we eat, we do not just take in nutrients – we also consume a significant quantity of bacteria. The body is faced with the challenge of simultaneously distributing the ingested glucose and fighting these bacteria. This triggers an inflammatory response that activates the immune systems of healthy individuals and has a protective effect, as doctors from the University and the University Hospital Basel have proven for the first time. In overweight individuals, however, this inflammatory response fails so dramatically that it can lead to diabetes.
It is well known that type 2 diabetes (or adult-onset diabetes) leads to chronic inflammation with a range of negative impacts. A number of clinical studies have therefore treated diabetes by impeding the over-production of a substance involved…