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RePOOPulate: Synthetic stool effective agains C difficile

natasa778

Senior Member
Messages
1,774
yes it is for real :)

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130108201651.htm


A study on the artificial stool was published January 8 in the inaugural issue of Microbiome, a new peer-reviewed science journal. The stool -- a "super-probiotic" called RePOOPulate -- was created by Guelph microbiologist Emma Allen-Vercoe to replace human fecal matter used in stool transplants, a known treatment for C. difficile.

She made the super-probiotic from purified intestinal bacterial cultures grown in "Robo-gut" equipment in a Guelph laboratory that mimics the environment of the large intestine.
Besides offering an effective therapy against the deadly superbug, the artificial poop is safer, more stable and adaptable, and less "icky" than treatments for C. difficile infection such as fecal bacteriotherapy, the study said.

"It's an exciting finding," said Allen-Vercoe, a professor in Guelph's Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology.

She worked on the project with lead researchers Dr. Elaine Petrof, an infectious disease specialist at Kingston General Hospital and a professor at Queen's University, and Gregory Gloor, a biochemistry professor at the University of Western Ontario. Guelph pathobiology professor Scott Weese and researcher Michelle Daigneault were also involved.

C. difficile can overpopulate the colon when antibiotics kill healthy gut bacteria. C. difficile infection causes many gastrointestinal problems, including severe diarrhea, and often leads to outbreaks in hospitals and long-term care facilities.

Few treatments exist for people with recurring C. difficile infections. Stool transplants are among the more effective therapies, but human fecal matter may contain unknown pathogens, Allen-Vercoe said. "That puts people at risk for future disease."

Stool transplants are also limited by lack of acceptance among patients and health-care facilities and lack of standardized treatment regimens.

Using synthetic poop for transplants eliminates the risk of transmitting an infectious disease through fecal bacteria because "the exact composition of the bacteria administered is known and can be controlled," Allen-Vercoe said.

The method may be modified to suit individual patient needs, is easily reproduced, and is more appealing to many patients and physicians, she said.

The researchers tested RePOOPulate on two patients with chronic C. difficile infections who had previously failed to respond to several rounds of antibiotics. After treatment with the synthetic poop, both were symptom-free within three days and tested negative for C. difficile six months later.

As well, later microbial profiles of both patients showed that some features of the synthetic stool stabilized in their colons. "In other words, the introduced microbes were able to persist," Allen-Vercoe said. "This is important because most commercially available probiotics only colonize transiently."
Allen-Vercoe hopes doctors will one day use the RePOOPulate concept to treat other GI conditions, such as inflammatory bowel disease, obesity and even autism by replacing abnormal gut microbial ecosystems.
 

Bob

Senior Member
Messages
16,455
Location
England (south coast)
This could move this field of research forwards very quickly, now that the 'yuk' factor has been removed. It will be interesting to keep an eye on their research to see if they get any helpful results for IBD and autism etc.
 

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
I saw a video of her talking about this somewhere that someone posted a while back - very impressive.

People are also interested in a sort of re-bogey-ulate in which you get a nasal mucus transplant for chronic sinusitis, in which the microbiome is also not normal (don't try any of this at home, folks).
 
Messages
97
Location
usa
Sounds promising, maybe for more conditions as Bob suggest. Question comes to mind is how is this different than regular probiotics, or the kind that ship "live" in the culture (I think of Natren, supernatant), or yogurt/kefir.
 
Messages
97
Location
usa
That's interesting Sasha. I asked an ENT once which probiotics should be found in nasal/sinus, but he could not say. Hopefully, this can be determined at some point.
 

Bob

Senior Member
Messages
16,455
Location
England (south coast)
Sounds promising, maybe for more conditions as Bob suggest. Question comes to mind is how is this different than regular probiotics, or the kind that ship "live" in the culture (I think of Natren, supernatant), or yogurt/kefir.

This formula is cultured from bacteria extracted directly from faeces. And I'm guessing that it includes a wide range of bacteria found in faeces, but I haven't read up on the details of this specific formula yet. Also, the culture is implanted via the rectum, and not taken orally.
 

xchocoholic

Senior Member
Messages
2,947
Location
Florida
S boulardi has been shown to work for this too and it's a lot cheaper and easier to purchase.
I only needed a couple of days worth after my h pylori and parasite treatment left me with the runs. I didn't bother to get
tested for c diff since I knew it was a strong possibility. Jarrow and Metagenics carry this.

Eating raw fruits and veggies provides good yeast. S boulardi is just yeast from the outside of a fruit. Lichi
I think. The name of the fruit is in wiki. Tc .. X
 

Enid

Senior Member
Messages
3,309
Location
UK
Very interesting - thanks natasha - the gut as part of the immune system takes centre stage.
 

natasa778

Senior Member
Messages
1,774
I saw a video of her talking about this somewhere that someone posted a while back - very impressive.
People are also interested in a sort of re-bogey-ulate in which you get a nasal mucus transplant for chronic sinusitis, in which the microbiome is also not normal (don't try any of this at home, folks).


it was probably this presentation, at autism conference, quite recent

http://www.autismcanada.org/scientificsymposium/2012/vids/004_Emma_Allen/



... now the bogey-ulate I find REALLY gross :confused::confused: :D