Celebrating World Microbiome Day 2022

Feature -

Did you know that a group of giraffes are known as a ‘tower of giraffes’, a group of dolphins are known as a ‘pod’ and a group of bats are known as a ‘cauldron’?! Just like nature enthusiasts have group names for animals; scientists have a name for a mixed group of naturally occurring bacteria, fungi and viruses living in various parts of the body – they’re known as a ‘microbiome’. Today is ‘World Microbiome Day’ and a chance to talk about microbiomes and why they are important in cystic fibrosis (CF). We’re sharing some results from Trust-funded research looking at what happens to the microbiome in the gut (also known as the intestines) in cystic fibrosis.

What do the intestines do?

The intestines absorb the nutrients from food, help remove food waste and protect the body from unwanted and harmful, infection-causing bugs. To keep the intestines healthy and functioning well requires a thin layer of mucus, the right levels and numbers of (unharmful) bugs within the gut microbiome and all the different cells that line the intestines doing their job. Different cells absorb nutrients, produce mucus, produce chemicals that kill infection-causing bacteria and stimulate the movement of food waste in the intestines.

Why is the gut microbiome important?

The gut microbiome is a good thing! The different types of bacteria help to ensure that the right type of cells are present in the intestine lining, they educate the immune cells and they produce chemicals to help prevent inflammation and fight off infection-causing bacteria.

Why are we funding research to study the intestines?

Many people with CF get symptoms in their intestines. This can include lots of wind, bloating, nausea and painful blockages in the large intestine as constipation or in the small intestine as a severe CF complication called DIOS (distal intestinal obstructive syndrome). Treatment for the blockages can require unpleasant medicines that add to the symptoms, and sometimes requires surgery. People with CF have said that these symptoms and treatments can sometimes cause them to miss school or work, and impact their social life.

We’re funding a Strategic Research Centre programme about DIOS led by University of Liverpool based Professor Soraya Shirazi-Beechey. The researchers want to find out more about DIOS so we can develop better ways to treat it in the future.  One part of their research is to study what is different in how the gut works in CF in comparison to how it works normally.

What did the Trust-funded researchers investigate?

Many doctors don’t understand in detail the changes that are happening within the guts of people with CF to cause the symptoms they get. This means that the current medicines are designed to treat the gut symptoms, rather than what actually causes the symptoms. The researchers within the SRC have been studying the part of the guts where DIOS occurs – an area called the ileum. (Our guts are very long, and each part of the gut does a different job, so researchers need to only look where the problem occurs). They thought that changes in the bacteria within the microbiome, which in turn cause changes to the types of cells that line the intestines, might make DIOS more likely to occur. They did a number of studies to find out if their ideas were correct.

What did the researchers find?

The research showed that different types of bacteria are attached to the intestines in CF in comparison to healthy intestines. More infection-causing and inflammation-causing bacteria were present in CF in comparison to healthy intestine tissue they studied. There were fewer beneficial bacteria that helped keep the guts healthy too. Looking at the type of cells that lined the gut wall the researchers found that these had changed too – there were less cells that absorb nutrients from food.

Photo of Professor Soraya Shirazi-Beechey

"This is the first time changes in the gut microbiome attached to the cells in the gut have been identified in cystic fibrosis. They provide us and everyone in the CF research community with valuable information on one of the factors that leads to people developing DIOS. If we can reverse these changes, we may be able prevent DIOS from happening.”

"Alongside our gut microbiome research, we have been studying whether an existing medicine could be repurposed to improve the fluidity of the gut. A marker of a positive effect of these medicines would be to restore the gut microbiome back to normal,” said Professor Soraya Shirazi-Beechey, Principal Investigator of our Gut fluidity SRC

For more information on other aspects of this SRC, read our Research in focus report on gut symptoms published in June 2021.

These results were published in the prestigious scientific journal Scientific Reports. Read the full research paper here: Kelly et al Scientific Reports, 2022 Apr 21;12(1):6593 


Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic condition which causes sticky mucus to build up in the lungs and digestive system. It affects more than 10,800 people in the UK. One in 25 of us carries the faulty gene that causes it, usually without knowing.

Since 1964, we've supported people with cystic fibrosis to live longer, healthier lives -and we won’t stop until everyone can live without limits imposed by CF.

Your donations help us fund vital research. Donate today to help everyone with CF live a life unlimited.

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