粪便也能治病？哈佛使用粪便填充胶囊可治疗高抗药性细菌感染

  梭状芽孢杆菌属于孢子菌，在自然界中是一种非常独特的种类，当其进入到人或动物体内时，常会引起肌肉和软组织感染、肠道疾病和神经中毒性疾病。梭状芽孢杆菌引起动物发病的机理通常是间接地通过其产生的一种或多种毒素（毒蛋白质）来致病。
  难以分辨的梭状芽孢杆菌每年约造成14000名美国人死亡，而原因往往是因为，导致腹泻的细菌是标准的抗生素高度耐药菌。现在，科学家已经找到了一种对付其的不同寻常的方法：以药丸形式的人类粪便。自1950年代以来，医生们已知使用所谓的粪便抑制来抗击各类感染。这种治疗方式被认为是通过重建肠道中菌群的自然平衡来实现的，即肠道天然存在的菌群可以在与入侵菌群的竞争中获得胜利。通常情况下，医生将捐赠者的粪便通过直肠结肠镜检查或者塑料管运行到鼻子或者嘴巴，再下行到胃中。这些方法虽然是比较安全的，但是并不是完全没有危险的。在这项新的研究中，近日已经发表在了出美国医学协会期刊上，该研究表明，将冷冻的排泄物封装在确定的1.6克合成药丸中，在治疗难辨的梭菌中，可以作为安全有效的方式，来取代传统的粪便移植技术。开始服药的8周以内，20名患者中的18个，彻底解决了腹泻的问题，这是在消耗30或者60个粪便胶囊之后产生的结果。“这可能是你一生中最不好的体验，”哈佛大学儿科传染病医生兼项目负责人Ilan Youngster说道，“但是它能避免你的的喉咙被塑料管侵入或者结肠镜检查，这两者的感觉具有很大的差别。”（转化医学网360zhyx.com）
  原文：Clostridium difficile infections kill approximately 14,000 Americans every year, often because the diarrhea-causing bacteria are highly resistant to standard antibiotics. Now, scientists have found an unusual way to combat the bugs: human feces in pill form. Doctors have used so-called fecal transplants since the 1950s to combat various types of infections. The treatment is thought to work by restoring the gut’s natural balance of bacteria, which can outcompete the invading microbes for resources. Typically, physicians insert the donor feces rectally through a colonoscopy or a plastic tube running into the nose or mouth and down to the stomach. While these procedures are both relatively safe, they are not entirely devoid of risk. In the new study, published today in The Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers show that frozen fecal matter encapsulated in clear, 1.6 g synthetic pills (not pictured) was just as safe and effective as traditional fecal transplant techniques at treating C. difficile. Within 8 weeks or less, 18 out of 20 participants saw a complete resolution of diarrhea after consuming 30 or 60 of the feces-filled capsules. “It’s probably not the best experience of your life,” says team leader Ilan Youngster, a pediatric infectious disease doctor at Harvard University. “But it beats getting a tube stuck down your throat or a colonoscopy … or having C. diff.”
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