Gut control

As evidence mounts linking obesity to the microbiome, three independent studies have identified separate ways of harnessing gut microbiota to treat the condition. The spectrum of approaches, which involve a bacterial protein, a bacterial species and a gut signature, reflects the complexity and new thinking involved in harnessing the microbiome for therapeutics, and is likely a sign of the broad strategies companies will need to adopt to make headway in the rapidly emerging field.

The three papers were published late last year in different Nature journals, and have thus far translated into an early clinical trial and plans for a spinout, with two of the groups fast to file IP. ...