The gut microbiome: Recent findings and future opportunities in cystic fibrosis

The gut microbiome is a key modulator of human health throughout life, from infancy to old age. Within this relatively young field, microbiome characteristics are being utilized as useful clinical endpoints and indicators of health. Moreover, microbiome-based interventions have been developed to modulate the gut microbiome to ameliorate a range of disorders, including inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, and diabetes. Conversely, there is a paucity of knowledge on the cystic fibrosis (CF) gut microbiome, despite its obvious importance in gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms in this disorder. In this short review we focus on recent findings in CF gut microbiome research and draw upon advances and knowledge from the wider field of gut microbiome research. We recommend increased efforts to improve our understanding of the CF gut microbiome, with knowledge transfer from the field of gut microbiome research being a pragmatic approach to both guiding and providing novel interventions to manage and improve CF GI pathophysiology and associated comorbidities.