IBDs including irritable bowel syndrome (ibs) or ulcerative colitis (uc) are a set of diseases developing into an epidemic. The unusual and recent rise in these kind of diseases most notably on developed countries point to a recent and area specific etiology, not a better healthcare and diagnosis.
Recent researchs are pointing to a healthier immune system and intestinal flora in undeveloped countries' population and an imbalance in our gut flora caused by excessive use of antibiotics.
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2. IBD are a set of diseases developing
into an epidemic
The unusual and recent rise in these kind of diseases most
notably on developed countries point to a recent and area
specific etiology, not a better healthcare and diagnosis.
Recent research are pointing to a healthier immune system and
intestinal flora in undeveloped countries and population
• First Look at the Microbes of Modern Hunter-Gatherers
Pharma companies are incresing their budget to investigate new
drugs to treat Chron’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis.
Sidney, Scotland and Calgary public health services are
investigating the rise of these diseases reaching epidemic
proportions, specially on children population
• IBD on the Rise Worldwide, more on developed countries
• Kid’s Chron epidemic in Scotland
• IBD on the rise in Ontario specially on children
3. Research hints flora imbalance as
the most probable cause
Researchers discover the cause of Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
Professor Michael Schemann’s research team at the TUM Department for Human
Biology demonstrated that micro-inflammations of the mucosa causes sensitization
of the enteric nervous system, which in turn causes irritable bowel syndrome. The
researchers used ultrafast optical measuring methods to demonstrate that
mediators from mast cells and enterochromaffin cells directly activate the nerve
cells in the bowel. The hypersensitivity of the enteric nervous system upsets
communication between the gut’s mucosa and its nervous system. Project leader
Prof. Schemann explained: “The irritated mucosa releases increased amounts of
neuroactive substances such as serotonin, histamine and protease. This cocktail
produced by the body could be the real cause of the unpleasant IBS complaints.”
The scientists are the first to identify IBS’s cause; up to now, many doctors have
dismissed their IBS patients as merely being hypochondriacs. Irritable bowel
syndrome makes life miserable for those affected — an estimated ten percent or
more of the population. And what irritates many of them even more is that they
often are labeled as hypochondriacs, since physical causes for irritable bowel
syndrome have never been identified until now.
4. Sources
• Buhner S, Li Q, Vignali S, Barbara G, De Giorgio R, Stanghellini V, Cremon C, Zeller F, Langer R, Daniel H,
Michel K, Schemann M: “Activation of human enteric neurons by supernatants of colonic biopsy
specimens from patients with irritable bowel syndrome”. Gastroenterology. 2009; 137: 1425-1434.
• Abstract
• Schneider J, Jehle EC, Starlinger MJ, Neunlist M, Michel K, Hoppe S, Schemann M: “Neurotransmitter
coding of enteric neurons in the submucous plexus is changed in non-inflamed rectum of patients with
Crohn's disease”. Neurogastroenterol Motil. 2001; 13: 255-264.
• Abstract
Academic Career and Research Areas
Prof. Schemann’s (b. 1956) research focuses on the neural regulation of gastrointestinal
functions. With the aid of ultrafast imaging, he investigates the neurophysiology and
neuropharmacology of the human enteric nervous system. As well as exploring basic
neurobiological issues, he also examines the role of the enteric nervous system in the
pathogenesis of functional and inflammatory diseases of the gut. Another aspect of his work
involves identifying new targets to treat these diseases. After studying agricultural biology,
Prof. Schemann did his doctorate (1985) and lecturer qualification (1990) at the University of
Hohenheim. During that time, a German Research Foundation grant enabled him to work at
Ohio State University, USA. He received a Heisenberg grant to work at the Max Planck
Institute for Physiological and Clinical Research in Bad Nauheim. In 1994, he became professor
of vegetative physiology at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Hannover. Since 2002, he
has been full professor of human biology at TUM. Prof. Schemann is a member of the editorial
board of Gastroenterology and Gut.
5. Further research blames extensiveuse
of antibiotics as cause of imbalance
Gut Biota Never Recover from Antibiotic Use: Loss
Extends to Future Generations
Evidence shows the mass antibiotics experiment is devastating our children’s
health. It may be the reason so many struggle for breath and can’t assimilate food
properly.
Emerging research shows that the harmful effects of antibiotics go much further than the development of
drug resistant diseases. The beneficial bacteria lost to antibiotics, along with disease-inducing bacteria, do
not recover fully. Worse, flora lost by a mother is also lost to her babies. The missing beneficial gut bacteria
are likely a major factor behind much of the chronic disease experienced today. The continuous use of
antibiotics is resulting in each generation experiencing worse health than their parents.
Martin Blaser is chair of the Department of Medicine, New York University Langone Medical Center. Is the
author of a report in the prestigious journal Nature and he writes:
Antibiotics kill the bacteria we do want, as well as those we don’t. These long-term changes to the
beneficial bacteria within people’s bodies may even increase our susceptibility to infections and disease.
Overuse of antibiotics could be fuelling the dramatic increase in conditions such as obesity, type 1 diabetes,
inflammatory bowel disease, allergies and asthma, which have more than doubled in many populations.
Aside from the development of superbugs, we’re now seeing clear documentation that the overall long
term effects of antibiotics are devastatingly harmful to our health. Speaking to ABC News, Blaser said:
Antibiotics are miraculous. They’ve changed health and medicine over the last 70 years. But when doctors
prescribe antibiotics, it is based on the belief that there are no long-term effects. We’ve seen evidence that
suggests antibiotics may permanently change the beneficial bacteria that we’re carrying.
6. Sources
• Enterotypes of the human gut microbiome
• The changing hypothesis of the gut
• Antibiotic overuse: Stop the killing of beneficial bacteria
7. Gastroenterologists worldwide
make a breakthrough
Fecal transplants successful in treating intestinal ailment
An infusion of feces from a healthy person is much more effective than an antibiotic in treating C.
difficile, a recurrent intestinal infection, researchers find.
A new study has found that an infusion of feces from a healthy person into an ailing patient's gut was
significantly more effective than a traditional antibiotic treatment — raising hopes that the
unconventional approach could one day help combat obesity, food allergies and a host of other
maladies.
The study, published online Wednesday by the New England Journal of Medicine, a reference
magazine for the medical community worldwide, demonstrated that the fecal transplant cleared up a
recurrent bacterial infection far more reliably than the routinely prescribed medication. In fact, the
transplant was so successful that the research trial was ended early so that patients in the control
groups could be given the remedy as well.
As a treatment for recurrent Clostridium difficile infection — an ailment that affects nearly 1% of
patients hospitalized in the U.S. and plays a role in an estimated 100,000 deaths a year — the
transplant had a 94% cure rate, three times greater than for those who took only the antibiotic
vancomycin.
"It's a strange concept to use stool, which has always been looked on as something dirty," said Dr.
Lawrence Brandt, a gastroenterologist at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York who has
conducted transplants for 14 years but wasn't involved in the study. "We're entering a very exciting
new chapter in medicine."[…]
Source
The New England Journal of Medicine
Duodenal Infusion of Donor Feces for Recurrent Clostridium difficile
8. Fecalmicrobiotatransplantationfor
severeenterocolonic fistulizingCrohn's
disease.
• Authors Zhang FM, et al. Show all Journal
• World J Gastroenterol. 2013 Nov 7;19(41):7213-6. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i41.7213.
Affiliation
Fa-Ming Zhang, Hong-Gang Wang, Min Wang, Bo-Ta Cui, Zhi-Ning Fan, Guo-Zhong Ji, Digestive
Endoscopy and Medical Center for Digestive Diseases, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing
Medical University, Nanjing 210011, Jiangsu Province, China.
Abstract
The concept of fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has been used in traditional Chinese
medicine at least since the 4(th) century. Evidence from recent human studies strongly supports
the link between intestinal bacteria and inflammatory bowel disease. We proposed that
standardized FMT might be a promising rescue therapy for refractory inflammatory bowel
disease. However, there were no reports of FMT used in patients with severe Crohn's disease
(CD). Here, we report the successful treatment of standardized FMT as a rescue therapy for a
case of refractory CD complicated with fistula, residual Barium sulfate and formation of
intraperitoneal large inflammatory mass. As far as we know, this is the first case of severe CD
treated using FMT through mid-gut.
Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/24222969/
9. Rebiotix Clinical Program
Developing solutions for difficult-to-treat gastrointestinal diseases
Rebiotix is pursuing a focused clinical research program to develop new
solutions to challenging gastrointestinal diseases.
The company’s first target is recurrent Clostridium difficile (C diff), a
healthcare-acquired infection that has been termed an urgent public
health threat by the US Centers for Disease Control.
About RBX2660
Lead product, RBX2660 (microbiota suspension) is currently undergoing
Phase 2 evaluation in the PUNCH™ CD study.
Rebiotix is currently working with the US Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) on the design for a Phase 3 study of the product.
RBX2660 is a second generation version of fecal transplant therapy
featuring a number of refinements designed to improve on a non-
antibiotic technique that has been used to treat recurrent C diff
successfully.
The company is also actively exploring additional
products for other gastrointestinal diseases.
10. The Centre for Digestive Diseases
for Research And Treatment
The Centre for Digestive Diseases (CDD), under the leadership of
founder and Medical Director, Professor Thomas Borody, has
distinguished itself as a unique medical institution offering novel
approaches in researching, diagnosing and treating gastrointestinal (GI)
conditions.
CDD offers a range of services in the day-procedure unit. Patients
undergo a range of procedures in its well-equipped facilities, supported
by an ISO 9002 accredited organisation consisting of 38 staff. CDD offers
patients a high standard of professional care and service.
CDD also houses a Department of Research and Innovation responsible
for conducting clinical trials approved by an independent Human
Research Ethics Committee (HREC).
Located in Sydney Australia, CDD is internationally regarded as a unique
medical institution, collaborating with pharmaceutical companies,
universities and medical societies in striving to provide excellence in
gastroenterology.
11. Our recent publications and
abstracts
• Anti-MAP therapy in the treatment of active Crohn's disease.
T.J. Borody, R. Clancy, A. Wettstein, K.J. Herdman, M. Torres, S. Tye, G.
Pang, E. Campbell, S. Leis.
Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology 2005; 20(Suppl): A2.
• Bacteriotherapy using fecal flora: toying with human motions.
TJ Borody, EF Warren, SM Leis, R Surace, O Ashman, S Siarakas.
J Clin Gastroenteroly 2004; 38(6): 475-83.
• Irritable bowel syndrome and Dientamoeba fragilis.
TJ Borody, C Robertson, A Wettstein, E Warren, R Surace.
IBIS News and Views. Winter 2002; 4-5.
• For a complete list refer to
http://cdd.com.au/pages/publications/publications_abstracts.html
12. OpenBiome First to Market in the
US with Fecal Microbiota
About OpenBiome
OpenBiome is a nonprofit organization dedicated to expanding access
to fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) therapies. Founded by a small
team of microbiologists, public health advocates, and concerned
citizens, OpenBiome aims to significantly reduce the practical barriers
for clinicians providing FMTs, while connecting scientists across studies
and disciplines.
Why did we launch OpenBiome?
Motivated by scientific curiosity and frustration at the struggle of a
friend suffering from recurrent C. difficile, we founded the OpenBiome
project to give a broader pool of clinicians access to the carefully
screened samples necessary to perform FMT.
Despite the underlying simplicity and efficacy of FMT, it has become
difficult to practice at the scale required due to the challenges of
screening donors and processing stool material. OpenBiome is designed
to simplify the FMT process by freeing clinicians to focus on providing
care and conducting research rather than preparing stool and filing
paperwork.
13. Doctor’s clinical experience on
FMT
Dr. Thomas Borody from the Centre for Digestive
Diseases.
Fecal Bacteriotherapy (Human Probiotic Infusion) for Clostridium
difficile infection.
14. Dr. Lawrence Brandt
Lawrence Brandt, MD, professor of medicine and surgery at the Albert
Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, discusses a study on the
outcomes of fecal microbiota transplants on almost 100 patients across
the country with refractory Clostridium difficile colitis. He explains that
91 percent of the patients experienced prompt relief. Including those
who underwent a second transplant or a post-transplant course of
medication, 98.3 percent of the patients experienced relief.
15. Dr. Carl V. Crawford
Carl V. Crawford, M.D., a gastroenterologist at the
Center for Advanced Digestive Care at NewYork-
Presbyterian, explains Fecal Microbiota
Transplantation as a treatment for Ulcerative
Colitis.
16. The Power of Poop
• Leading website compiling success stories of patients that
have been treated with FMT
• http://thepowerofpoop.com/