Differential effects of two common antiparasitics on microbiota resilience.

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

Parasitic infections challenge vertebrate health worldwide, and off-target effects of antiparasitic treatments may be an additional obstacle to recovery. However, there have been few investigations of the effects of antiparasitics on the gut microbiome in the absence of parasites.

METHODS:

We investigated whether two common antiparasitics-albendazole and metronidazole-significantly alter the gut microbiome of parasite-free mice. We treated mice with albendazole or metronidazole daily for seven days and sampled the fecal microbiota immediately before and after treatment, and again after a two-week recovery period.

RESULTS:

Albendazole did not immediately change the gut microbiota, while metronidazole decreased microbial richness by 8.5% and significantly changed community structure during treatment. The structural changes caused by metronidazole included depletion of the beneficial family Lachnospiraceae, and predictive metagenomic analysis revealed that these losses likely depressed microbiome metabolic function. Separately, we compared the fecal microbiotas of treatment groups after recovery, and there were minor differences in community structure between the albendazole, metronidazole, and sham-treated control groups.

CONCLUSIONS:

These results suggest that a healthy microbiome is resilient after metronidazole-induced depletions of beneficial gut microbes and albendazole may cause slight, latent shifts in the microbiota but does not deplete healthy gut microbiota diversity.

• Authors: Margaret L Doolin, M Denise Dearing
• Journal: The Journal of infectious diseases (J Infect Dis) (Nov 30 2023) ISSN: 1537-6613 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 38036425 (Publication Type: Journal Article)
• Copyright: © The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: [email protected].