Compositions comprising bacterial strains

Abstract

The invention provides a composition comprising a bacterial strain of the genus Megasphaera, for use in the treatment or prevention of an autoimmune or inflammatory disorder or cancer

1 - 19 . (canceled) 
     
     
         20 . A method for treating or preventing a disease or condition mediated by Class I HDAC activity in a subject in need thereof, comprising administering to the subject in need thereof a bacterial strain having a 16S rRNA gene sequence with at least 97% identity to a sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 1, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18. 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the identity is determined by a Smith-Waterman homology search algorithm using an affine gap search with a gap open penalty of 12, a gap extension penalty of 2. 
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the 16S rRNA gene sequence has at least 98% identity to a sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 1, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 22 , wherein the 16S rRNA gene sequence has at least 99% identity to a sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 1, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18. 
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 22 , wherein the 16S rRNA gene sequence is selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 1, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18. 
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the bacterial strain is of  Megasphaera massiliensis.    
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the bacterial strain is a  Megasphaera massiliensis  strain deposited under accession number NCIMB 42787. 
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the bacterial strain selectively inhibits Class I HDAC activity. 
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 27 , wherein the bacterial strain selectively inhibits HDAC1, HDAC2 or HDAC3. 
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the subject in need thereof has an elevated HDAC activity. 
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the bacterial strain is administered orally. 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the disease or condition is an autoimmune or inflammatory disorder or cancer. 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the disease or condition is asthma, arthritis, psoriasis, diabetes, allograft rejection, graft-versus-host disease, an inflammatory bowel disease, such as Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis, or prostate cancer, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, liver cancer or gastric cancer. 
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the bacterial strain is dried. 
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the bacterial strain is comprised in a pharmaceutical composition comprising a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient, carrier, or diluent. 
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 34 , wherein the pharmaceutical composition comprises at least 1×10 6  CFU/g, with respect to the weight of the composition. 
     
     
         36 . The method of  claim 34 , wherein the pharmaceutical composition comprises from 1×10 6  to 1×10 11  CFU/g, with respect to the weight of the composition. 
     
     
         37 . The method of  claim 36 , wherein the pharmaceutical composition is encapsulated. 
     
     
         38 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the administering comprises oral, rectal, nasal, buccal, sublingual, or subcutaneous administration.