Researchers from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville have discovered a type of gut bacteria that could prove effective where other types of helpful bacteria have failed in the fight against Clostridium difficile. A new treatment derived from the bacteria could be available by the end of the calendar year, according to The Daily Progress.
Erica L. Buonomo, a PhD student in microbiology and immunology, incited the creation of the new potential probiotic treatment after she identified a particular type of white blood cell that acts as a barrier to infection. The cells, called eosinophils, are corralled by a protein called IL-25. C. diff kills eosinophils, which then allows the infection to enter the gut. An appropriate probiotic treatment designed to fuel the production of eosinophils could prove effective in combating C. diff.
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"We identified a pathway in the immune response that reduces the severity of an infection," Ms. Buonomo told Daily Progress. "When we activate this pathway, we find mice are a lot less sick."
The probiotic treatment is currently undergoing advanced clinical trials at the University of Virginia, according to Daily Progress.
A study backed by the CDC and published in The New England Journal of Medicine estimated more than 29,000 people died of a C. diff infection in 2011.
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