Bacteriophage-mediated manipulation of the gut microbiome - promises and presents limitations

Research output: Contribution to journalReviewpeer-review

Gut microbiome (GM) composition and function are linked to human health and disease, and routes for manipulating the GM have become an area of intense research. Due to its high treatment efficacy, the use of fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is generally accepted as a promising experimental treatment for patients suffering from GM imbalances (dysbiosis), e.g. caused by recurrent Clostridioides difficile infections (rCDI). Mounting evidence suggests that bacteriophages (phages) play a key role in successful FMT treatment by restoring the dysbiotic bacterial GM. As a refinement to FMT, removing the bacterial component of donor feces by sterile filtration, also referred to as fecal virome transplantation (FVT), decreases the risk of invasive infections caused by bacteria. However, eukaryotic viruses and prophage-encoded virulence factors remain a safety issue. Recent in vivo studies show how cascading effects are initiated when phage communities are transferred to the gut by e.g. FVT, which leads to changes in the GM composition, host metabolome, and improve host health such as alleviating symptoms of obesity and type-2-diabetes (T2D). In this review, we discuss the promises and limitations of FVT along with the perspectives of using FVT to treat various diseases associated with GM dysbiosis.

Original languageEnglish
JournalFEMS Microbiology Reviews
Volume44
Issue number4
Pages (from-to)507-521
Number of pages15
ISSN0168-6445
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2020

    Research areas

  • bacteriophages, cascading effects, dysbiosis, fecal virome transplantation, gut microbiome, phage therapy

ID: 247333524