Effect of Fecal Microbiota Transplantation on 8-Week Remission in Patients With Ulcerative Colitis: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: High-intensity, aerobically prepared fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has demonstrated efficacy in treating active ulcerative colitis (UC). FMT protocols involving anaerobic stool processing methods may enhance microbial viability and allow efficacy with a lower treatment intensity.

Objective: To assess the efficacy of a short duration of FMT therapy to induce remission in UC using anaerobically prepared stool.

Fiber Supplements Derived From Sugarcane Stem, Wheat Dextrin and Psyllium Husk Have Different Effects on the Human Gut Microbiota.

There is growing public interest in the use of fiber supplements as a way of increasing dietary fiber intake and potentially improving the gut microbiota composition and digestive health. However, currently there is limited research into the effects of commercially available fiber supplements on the gut microbiota. Here we used an human digestive and gut microbiota model system to investigate the effect of three commercial fiber products; NutriKane™, Benefiber® and Psyllium husk (Macro) on the adult gut microbiota.

Culture- and metagenomics-enabled analyses of the Methanosphaera genus reveals their monophyletic origin and differentiation according to genome size.

The genus Methanosphaera is a well-recognized but poorly characterized member of the mammalian gut microbiome, and distinctive from Methanobrevibacter smithii for its ability to induce a pro-inflammatory response in humans. Here we have used a combination of culture- and metagenomics-based approaches to expand the representation and information for the genus, which has supported the examination of their phylogeny and physiological capacity. Novel isolates of the genus Methanosphaera were recovered from bovine rumen digesta and human stool, with the bovine isolate remarkable for its large genome size relative to other Methanosphaera isolates from monogastric hosts.

In Vitro Response of Rumen Microbiota to the Antimethanogenic Red Macroalga Asparagopsis taxiformis.

The red macroalga Asparagopsis taxiformis has been shown to significantly decrease methane production by rumen microbial communities. This has been attributed to the bioaccumulation of halogenated methane analogues produced as algal secondary metabolites. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of A.

Genomic insights into the carbohydrate catabolism of Cairneyella variabilis gen. nov. sp. nov., the first reports from a genome of an ericoid mycorrhizal fungus from the southern hemisphere.

This paper describes a novel species of ericoid mycorrhizal fungus from Australia, Cairneyella variabilis, Midgley and Tran-Dinh, gen. nov. sp.

Analysis of the bovine rumen microbiome reveals a diversity of Sus-like polysaccharide utilization loci from the bacterial phylum Bacteroidetes.

Several unique Sus-like polysaccharide utilization loci (PULs) were identified from bacteria resident in bovine rumen microbiomes through functional screening of a fosmid library. The loci were phylogenetically assigned to the genus Prevotella within the phylum Bacteroidetes. These findings were augmented by a bioinformatic re-evaluation of ruminal Prevotella genomes, revealing additional loci not previously reported in the literature.

Draft Genome Sequence of Thermoanaerobacter sp. Strain A7A, Reconstructed from a Metagenome Obtained from a High-Temperature Hydrocarbon Reservoir in the Bass Strait, Australia.

The draft genome sequence of Thermoanaerobacter sp. strain A7A was reconstructed from a metagenome of a microbial consortium obtained from the Tuna oil field in the Gippsland Basin, Australia. The organism is a strict anaerobe that is predicted to ferment a range of simple sugars and undertake sulfur reduction.

Draft Genome Sequence of Thermotoga maritima A7A Reconstructed from Metagenomic Sequencing Analysis of a Hydrocarbon Reservoir in the Bass Strait, Australia.

The draft genome sequence of Thermotoga maritima A7A was obtained from a metagenomic assembly obtained from a high-temperature hydrocarbon reservoir in the Gippsland Basin, Australia. The organism is predicted to be a motile anaerobe with an array of catabolic enzymes for the degradation of numerous carbohydrates.

Draft Genome Sequence of Clostridium sp. Maddingley, Isolated from Coal-Seam Gas Formation Water.

Clostridium sp. Maddingley was isolated as an axenic culture from a brown coal-seam formation water sample collected from Victoria, Australia. It lacks the solventogenesis genes found in closely related clostridial strains.

Draft Genome Sequence of Methanobacterium sp. Maddingley, Reconstructed from Metagenomic Sequencing of a Methanogenic Microbial Consortium Enriched from Coal-Seam Gas Formation Water.

The draft genome of Methanobacterium sp. Maddingley was reconstructed from metagenomic sequencing of a methanogenic microbial consortium enriched from coal-seam gas formation water. It is a hydrogenotrophic methanogen predicted to grow using hydrogen and carbon dioxide.

Draft genome sequence of Treponema sp. strain JC4, a novel spirochete isolated from the bovine rumen.

Morphologically and biochemically diverse members of the Treponema genus are present in the gastrointestinal tract of ruminants, yet very little is understood about their functional importance to this microbiome. Here we describe the annotated draft genome sequence of Treponema sp. strain JC4, a novel spirochete isolated from a bovine rumen sample.

High-yield and phylogenetically robust methods of DNA recovery for analysis of microbial biofilms adherent to plant biomass in the herbivore gut.

Recent studies have shown the microbial biofilms adherent to plant biomass in the gastrointestinal tracts of humans and other herbivores are quite different to planktonic populations. If these biofilm communities are to be properly characterized by metagenomics methods, then the microbial desorption methods used must ensure the phylogenetic diversity and genetic potential recovered is biologically valid. To that end, we describe here two different methods for desorbing microbes tightly adherent to plant biomass; and used PCR-DGGE analyses of the Bacteria and Archaea rrs genes to show both these desorption methods were effective in recovering the adherent microbial biofilm with no apparent biases in microbe recovery.

Class 1 integrons in benthic bacterial communities: abundance, association with Tn402-like transposition modules and evidence for coselection with heavy-metal resistance.

The integron/gene cassette system contributes to lateral gene transfer of genetic information in bacterial communities, with gene cassette-encoded proteins potentially playing an important role in adaptation to stress. Class 1 integrons are a particularly important class as they themselves seem to be broadly disseminated among the Proteobacteria and have an established role in the spread of antibiotic resistance genes. The abundance and structure of class 1 integrons in freshwater sediment bacterial communities was assessed through sampling of 30 spatially distinct sites encompassing different substrate and catchment types from the Greater Melbourne Area of Victoria, Australia.