Insects as models to study the impact of antibiotics and microbiota therapies on the human gut microbiome: reducing the use of animals in research

背景：人类肠道是复杂微生物群落（肠道菌群）的家园，对我们的健康和福祉有着深远的影响。我们对特定细菌物种对病原体耐药性的贡献，以及抗生素如何影响微生物群和抗微生物耐药性基因（即“抗性组”）的携带的知识还远远不够完整。至关重要的是，由于伦理考虑，我们调查抗生素和“益生菌”治疗对人类肠道微生物群影响的机会有限。虽然可以使用小鼠模型，但这些模型也受到严格的道德控制和成本限制。昆虫模型代表了现实的选择。mellonella（大蜡蛾）已被用于毒性、微生物毒力和抗生素敏感性试验，因此代表了研究微生物群相互作用的一个有吸引力的模型系统。目的：本博士研究生的目标是建立大肠杆菌作为模型系统来研究人类肠道微生物群，特别是婴儿肠道微生物群，并确定抗益生菌和益生菌对这些微生物群落的影响。分子微生物学、下一代测序、生物信息学和昆虫饲养技术都将在这个多学科的博士学位中使用。

Background: The human gut is home to complex microbial communities (the gut microbiota) that have a profound effect on our health and well-being. Our knowledge of the contribution of specific bacterial species to resistance against pathogens, and how antibiotics impact the microbiota and the carriage of antimicrobial resistance genes (i.e. the 'resistome') is far from complete. Crucially, our opportunities to investigate the effects of antibiotics and 'probiotic' treatments on the human gut microbiome are limited due to ethical considerations. Although murine models can be used these are also subject to strict ethical controls and cost constraints. Insect models represent realistic alternatives. G. mellonella (Greater wax moth) has been utilised in toxicity, microbial virulence and antibiotic susceptibility trials, and thus represents an attractive model system for studying microbiota interactions.Aims: The goal of this PhD studentship is to establish G. mellonella as a model system to study the human gut microbiome, particularly that of infants, and determine the impact that anti- and pro-biotics have on these microbial communities. Molecular microbiology, next generation sequencing, bioinformatics, and insect husbandry techniques will all be used in this multi-disciplinary PhD.