The gut microbiota regulates the host immune and nervous systems and plays an important role in the pathogenesis of autoimmune neurological disease multiple sclerosis (MS). There are considerable efforts currently being undertaken to develop therapies for MS based on the modulation of microbiota. Evidence from experimental models suggests that the manipulation of microbiota through diet or antibiotics prior to the disease development limits disease susceptibility. However, it is currently unclear if microbiota manipulation therapies would also have an impact on ongoing neurological disease. Here, we examined the effect of antibiotic-based microbiota modulation in spontaneous experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) mouse models of MS before and after the onset of autoimmune disease. Prophylactic antibiotic treatment led to a significant reduction of susceptibility to spontaneous EAE. In contrast, antibiotic treatment after the onset of spontaneous EAE did not show a significant amelioration. These results reveal that the perturbation of gut bacteria alters disease susceptibility but has minimal impact on the ongoing neurological disease.

中文翻译：

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肠道微生物群的扰动会降低易感性，但不会调节正在进行的自身免疫性神经疾病。

肠道微生物群调节宿主免疫和神经系统，并在自身免疫性神经疾病多发性硬化症 (MS) 的发病机制中发挥重要作用。目前正在进行大量的努力来开发基于微生物群调节的 MS 疗法。来自实验模型的证据表明，在疾病发展之前通过饮食或抗生素控制微生物群会限制疾病的易感性。然而，目前尚不清楚微生物群操作疗法是否也会对正在进行的神经系统疾病产生影响。在这里，我们检查了基于抗生素的微生物群调节在自发性实验性自身免疫性脑脊髓炎 (EAE) 小鼠 MS 模型中自身免疫性疾病发病前后的影响。预防性抗生素治疗显着降低了对自发性 EAE 的易感性。相比之下，自发性 EAE 发作后的抗生素治疗没有显示出显着的改善。这些结果表明，肠道细菌的扰动会改变疾病的易感性，但对正在进行的神经系统疾病的影响很小。