Use of microbial communities for human and animal health

Abstract

The disclosure relates to a mixture of bacteria belonging to at least six or seven different and specific bacterial species preferably for use in preventing or treating gastro-intestinal disorders. Preferably, the mixture of bacteria is grown together in a fermenter prior to administering the mixture to a subject in order to prevent or treat the disorder.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of treating a subject to reduce symptoms associated with a gastro-intestinal disorder, the method comprising:
 administering to the subject a composition consisting of:
 bacteria belonging to the species  Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, Butyricicoccus pullicaecorum, Roseburia inulinivorans, Roseburia hominis, Akkermansia muciniphila, Lactobacillus plantarum , and  Anaerostipes caccae , and 
 optionally, a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient or excipient(s), 
   so as to increase butyrate production or increase protective effects towards gut barrier function in the subject and thus reduce symptoms associated with the gastro-intestinal disorder in the subject.   
     
     
         2 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the gastro-intestinal disorder is a disruption of the barrier function of the gut, diarrhea, constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, coeliac disease, pouchitis, mucositis, an infection of the gut, gut microbiota dysbiosis, and any combination thereof. 
     
     
         3 . A method of treating a subject to reduce symptoms associated with a gastro-intestinal disorder, the method comprising:
 administering to the subject a composition consisting of:
 bacteria belonging to the species  Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, Butyricicocccus pullicaecorum, Roseburia inulinivorans, Akkermansia muciniphila, Lactobacillus plantarum , and  Anaerostipes caccae , and 
 optionally, a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient or excipient(s), 
   so as to increase butyrate production or increase protective effects towards gut barrier function in the subject and thus reduce symptoms associated with the gastro-intestinal disorder in the subject.   
     
     
         4 . The method according to  claim 3 , wherein the composition further includes one or more prebiotics. 
     
     
         5 . The method according to  claim 3 , wherein the bacteria are grown together in a fermenter prior to administration of the composition to the subject. 
     
     
         6 . The method according to  claim 5 , wherein the fermenter is a dynamic simulator of the gastrointestinal tract. 
     
     
         7 . The method according to  claim 3 , wherein the gastro-intestinal disorder is a disruption of the barrier function of the gut, diarrhea, constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, coeliac disease, pouchitis, mucositis, an infection of the gut, gut microbiota dysbiosis, and any combination thereof. 
     
     
         8 . The method according to  claim 3 , wherein the composition further includes bacteria belonging to the species  Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus mucosae, Bifidobacterium adolescentis, Bifidobacterium longum, Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron  and  Bacteroides vulgatus.    
     
     
         9 . The method according to  claim 3 , wherein the bacteria are selected from the group consisting of  Faecalibacterium prausnitzii  LMG P-29362,  Faecalibacterium prausnitzii  DSMZ 17677 , Butyricicoccus pullicaecorum  LMG P-29360 , Butyricicoccus pullicaecorum  LMG24109,  Roseburia  10  inulinivorans  LMG P-29365,  Roseburia inulinivorans  DSMZ 16841 , Akkermansia muciniphila  LMG P-29361 , Akkermansia muciniphila  DSMZ 22959,  Lactobacillus plantarum  LMG P-29366,  Lactobacillus plantarum  ZJ316 , Anaerostipes caccae  LMG P-29359 , Anaerostipes caccae  DSMZ 15 14662 and strains showing at least 97% sequence identity to the 16S rRNA sequences of at least one of the strains. 
     
     
         10 . A method of treating a subject to reduce symptoms associated with a gastro-intestinal disorder, the method comprising:
 administering to the subject a composition consisting of:
 bacteria belonging to the species  Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, Butyricicoccus pullicaecorum, Roseburia inulinivorans, Akkermansia muciniphila, Lactobacillus plantarum, Anaerostipes caccae, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus mucosae, Bifidobacterium adolescentis, Bifidobacterium longum, Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron , and  Bacteroides vulgatus , and 
 optionally, a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient or excipient(s), 
   so as to increase butyrate production or increase protective effects towards gut barrier function in the subject and thus reduce symptoms associated with the gastro-intestinal disorder in the subject.   
     
     
         11 . The method according to  claim 5 , wherein the bacteria, after having been grown together, have been frozen and subsequently thawed for administration to the subject. 
     
     
         12 . A method of treating a subject to reduce symptoms associated with a gastro-intestinal disorder, the method comprising:
 administering to the subject a composition consisting of:
 bacteria belonging to the species  Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, Butyricicoccus pullicaecorum, Roseburia inulinivorans, Roseburia hominis, Akkermansia muciniphila, Lactobacillus plantarum, Anaerostipes caccae, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus mucosae, Bifidobacterium adolescentis, Bifidobacterium longum, Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron , and  Bacteroides vulgatus  and 
 optionally, a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient or excipient(s), 
   so as to increase butyrate production or increase protective effects towards gut barrier function in the subject and thus reduce symptoms associated with the gastro-intestinal disorder in the subject.   
     
     
         13 . The method according to  claim 12 , wherein the composition further includes one or more prebiotics. 
     
     
         14 . The method according to  claim 12 , wherein the bacteria are grown together in a fermenter prior to administration of the composition to the subject. 
     
     
         15 . The method according to  claim 14 , wherein the fermenter is a dynamic simulator of the gastrointestinal tract. 
     
     
         16 . The method according to  claim 15 , wherein the bacteria, after having been grown together, have been frozen and subsequently thawed for administration to the subject. 
     
     
         17 . The method according to  claim 12 , wherein the bacteria are selected from the group consisting of  Faecalibacterium prausnitzii  LMG P-29362 , Faecalibacterium prausnitzii  DSMZ 17677 , Butyricicoccus pullicaecorum  LMG P-29360 , Butyricicoccus pullicaecorum  LMG24109,  Roseburia  10  inulinivorans  LMG P-29365,  Roseburia inulinivorans  DSMZ 16841,  Roseburia hominis  LMG P-29364,  Roseburia hominis  DSMZ 16839 , Akkermansia muciniphila  LMG P-29361 , Akkermansia muciniphila  DSMZ 22959,  Lactobacillus plantarum  LMG P-29366,  Lactobacillus plantarum  ZJ316 , Anaerostipes caccae  LMG P-29359 , Anaerostipes caccae  DSMZ 15 14662 and strains showing at least 97% sequence identity to the 16S rRNA sequences of at least one of the strains. 
     
     
         18 . A reactor comprising:
 a composition consisting of from 5 to 20 distinct bacterial members,   wherein when the composition resides in the reactor under standardized conditions representative of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract for a time of between 3 and 14 days, a functionally stable collaborome is obtained, and   wherein the standardized conditions representative of the GI tract comprise:
 a pH range of between 1.5 and 8; 
 carbon sources; 
 a retention time of between 10 minutes and 200 hours; 
 an oxygen availability of between 0 g/L and 8 g/L; 
 micronutrients; 
 optional antibiotic(s); 
 an optional bile salt concentration of less than or equal to 20 mM; 
 heavy metals; and 
 host factors as immune molecules. 
   
     
     
         19 . The reactor of  claim 18 , wherein the composition consists of from 5 to 15 distinct bacterial members. 
     
     
         20 . The reactor of  claim 19 , wherein the composition consists of from 6 to 14 distinct bacterial members. 
     
     
         21 . The reactor of  claim 18 , wherein when the composition resides in the reactor under standardized conditions representative of the GI tract for a time of between 3 and 10 days, a functionally stable collaborome is obtained.