What is it about?
Antibiotics can disrupt the gut microbiome and lead to infection by pathogenic organisms. We have developed a method to degrade antibiotics in the GI tract to protect the microbiome. An orally-delivered beta-lactamase enzyme, ribaxamase, was given to pigs treated with IV ceftriaxone. Ribaxamase degraded the ceftriaxone in the GI tract, protected the gut microbiome, and reduced the propagation of antibiotic resistance.
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Why is it important?
The gut microbiome is important for human health. We developed a strategy to inactivate antibiotics in the gut to protect the microbiome. Ribaxamase has the potential to become the first therapy to protect the gut microbiome from antibiotic damage and to reduce the emergence of antibiotic resistance.
Perspectives
Antibiotics, while life-saving have the unintended consequence of killing the commensal microbiota that make up the gut microbiome. Our prophylactic antibiotic-inactivation approach is intended to protect the gut microbiome to prevent infections such as C. difficile disease, and to reduce the evolution of antibiotic resistance. This protection and prevention strategy is in contrast to other methods that replace or augment an already damaged microbiome once disease is present. Microbiomes are unique and specifically suited to each individual. Therefore, preservation is preferable to restoration.
Sheila Connelly
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: SYN-004 (ribaxamase), an oral beta-lactamase, mitigates antibiotic-mediated dysbiosis in a porcine gut microbiome model, Journal of Applied Microbiology, May 2017, Wiley,
DOI: 10.1111/jam.13432.
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