Gut Bacteria For Drug Safety

Researchers in Michigan, headed by Cynthia M. Rohde, have recently reported that bacteria thriving inside the intestines of laboratory rats may influence the outcome of drug safety and other tests. The research team has also noted that there has been an increasing recognition on the hidden roles that some 100 trillion bacteria that are living in human intestines.

Laboratory rats, that live where humans live, have become the model organisms in research studies. It has the common name, brown rats. Back in 1895, Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts made the use of a population of domestic white brown rats a tradition in order to observe the effects of diet and for other physiological researches. Through the years, rats have been employed in various scientific researches, which have resulted to developments in genetics, diseases, the effects of drugs, and other topics. The use of such rodents has been beneficial to the health and wellbeing of humankind.

The research of this Michigan team has indicated that the so-called gut microflora can manipulate the immune system, affect how the body responds to food, impact the action of drugs, and other functions. Gut microflora are the microorganisms that can perform a number of functions that are useful for their hosts. Such functions include the digestion of energy substrates that were not utilized, the stimulation of the growth of cells, repression of the development of harmful microorganisms, training of the immune system to only take action against pathogens, and defense against some diseases The Michigan scientists commenced their study with the observation that a population of genetically identical rats, which are ordinarily used in laboratory experiments, have developed two metabolic types that are distinctively different. Such metabolic categories are varied as to how such laboratory rats metabolize or breakdown drugs and nutrients.

After detailed experimentation on the substances found in the urine of such laboratory animals, the scientists were able to conclude that the differences were results of the variation of the previously stated metabolic categories of the gut microbial populations. The scientists published a report on this study, which is entitled as Metabonomic Evaluation of Schaedler Altered Microflora Rats. It was stated in the report that the researchers made the recommendation to other scientists of checking laboratory rat populations for the said variations in metabolic activity caused by gut microflora, when doing their respective study, in order for their studies to assure accurate results. Such practice is especially recommended to researchers who are studying or evaluating the safety of new drugs.

In the observation of bacteria such as the gut microflora, a simple piece of equipment that can assist a researcher is the brightfield light microscope. A brightfield light microscope lights up the specimen sample by way of transmitted white light, as in the illumination that comes from below and observed from above. Aside from the built-in illuminator, a good brightfield light microscope is outfitted with an adjustable condenser that has an aperture diaphragm or contrast control. Aside from those, other parts of the brightfield light microscope include the mechanical stage and the binocular eyepiece tube. Some of the significant advantages of employing a brightfield light microscope for research are the simplicity of the technique and the minimal sample preparation.