Unveiling Disease Treatments through Gut Microbiome Analysis
A study has found that disease-specific disruptions in microbial cross-feeding interactions in the human gut may contribute to various health conditions. The researchers developed a scoring system called the Metabolite Exchange Score (MES) to identify the most affected cross-feeding interactions in diseases. By analyzing a dataset of 1661 stool metagenomes from healthy and diseased individuals, they discovered associations between specific diseases and disruptions in microbial metabolism, such as colorectal cancer and ethanol metabolism, rheumatoid arthritis and ribosyl nicotinamide metabolism, and Crohn's disease and hydrogen sulfide metabolism. The study highlights the potential of targeting and restoring microbial interactions as a strategy for treating gut microbiome-related diseases.