An ancient therapy modernized for Clostridioides Difficile therapy

An ancient therapy modernized for Clostridioides Difficile therapy

Clostridioides difficile is a type of bacteria that often affects people who have been taking antibiotics. Glenn S. Tillotson of GST Micro LLC explains how live biotherapeutic products have shown promise as a safe and effective treatment to help restore the normal gut microbiome. The normal human gastrointestinal tract provides multiple functions essential for health. When the balance of the complex collection of microorganisms (the microbiome) is disturbed, this leads to a phenomenon called dysbiosis. Microbes protect us against harmful bacteria, synthesize nutrients, and enable us to digest food. A damaged gut can lead to multiple conditions or contribute to various diseases, one of which is Clostridioides difficile, or ‘C. diff.’ This is the most common cause of antibiotic- and healthcare-associated infectious diarrhea in the US. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, C. diff. causes approximately half a million infections in the US every year, resulting in 30,000 deaths.