Illustration of the human gut microbiome. A vaccine made from carbohydrates has been created by scientists from the University of Guelph to combat Clostridium bolteae, a gut bacterium. This marks the first vaccine that aims to manage symptoms of diarrhea and constipation that may be caused by C. bolteae, as well as potentially alleviate autism-related symptoms associated with the microbe.
Scientists at the University of Guelph have developed a carbohydrate-based vaccine against the gut bug Clostridium bolteae. This is the first vaccine designed to control constipation and diarrhea potentially caused by C. bolteae and perhaps control autism-related symptoms associated with this microbe.
University of Guelph researchers have created a first-ever vaccine for gut bacteria common in autistic children.
The groundbreaking study by Brittany Pequegnat and Guelph chemistry professor Mario Monteiro appears this month in the journal Vaccine.
They developed a carbohydrate-based vaccine against the gut bug Clostridium bolteae.
C. bolteae is known to play a role in gastrointestinal disorders, and it often shows up in higher numbers in the GI tracts of autistic children than in those of healthy kids.
More than 90 percent of children with autism spectrum disorders suffer from chronic, severe gastrointestinal symptoms. Of those, about 75 percent suffer from diarrhea, according to current literature.
“Little is known about the factors that predispose autistic children to C. bolteae,” said Monteiro. Although most infections are handled by some antibiotics, he said, a vaccine would improve current treatment.
“This is the first vaccine designed to control constipation and diarrhea potentially caused by C. bolteae and perhaps control autism-related symptoms associated with this microbe,” he said.
Autism cases have increased almost sixfold over the past 20 years, and scientists don’t know why. Although many experts point to environmental factors, others have focused on the human gut.
Some researchers believe toxins and/or metabolites produced by gut bacteria, including C. bolteae, may be associated with symptoms and severity of autism, especially regressive autism.
Pequegnat, a master’s student, and Monteiro used bacteria grown by Mike Toh, a Guelph microbiology PhD student.
The new anti- C. bolteae vaccine targets the specific complex polysaccharides, or carbohydrates, on the surface of the bug.
The vaccine effectively raised C. bolteae-specific antibodies in rabbits. Doctors could also use the vaccine-induced antibodies to quickly detect the bug in a clinical setting, said Monteiro.
The vaccine might take more than 10 years to work through preclinical and human trials, and it may take even longer before a drug is ready for market, Monteiro said.
“But this is a significant first step in the design of a multivalent vaccine against several autism-related gut bacteria,” he said.
Monteiro has studied sugar-based vaccines for two other gastric pathogens: Campylobacter jejuni, which causes travelers’ diarrhea; and Clostridium difficile, which causes antibiotic-associated diarrhea.
Reference: “A vaccine and diagnostic target for Clostridium bolteae, an autism-associated bacterium” by Brittany Pequegnat, Martin Sagermann, Moez Valliani, Michael Toh, Herbert Chow, Emma Allen-Vercoe and Mario A. Monteiro, 18 April 2013, Vaccine.
DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2013.04.018
The research was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council.
Are you freaking kidding me? Wakefield and a group of doctors he worked with observed gut imbalances in kids with autism. So where’s the apology?