A new treatment that enables antibodies to be administered orally for gastrointestinal disorders has been developed by a group of scientists.
Phys.org reported on the breakthrough, which could see new therapies developed that can be ingested by both humans and animals. This is important because typically it’s not possible to treat a gastrointestinal infection orally using antibodies because they don’t survive digestion and therefore don’t reach the tissues in the gastrointestinal tract.
The news provider noted that antibody technology could be utilised for the treatment of a number of conditions, including veterinary and human gut infections and inflammatory and metabolic disorders.
The technology could also be used to help develop food supplements that are able to alter the gut microbiome.
Journal Nature Biology published the findings, which were made by a group of scientists collaborating across disciplines.
Nico Callewaert, from VIB-UGent Center for Medical Biotechnology, Ann Depicker, from VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology, Henri De Greve, from VIB-VUB Center for Structural Biology, and Eric Cox, from UGent Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, all worked on the research.
Being able to administer antibody treatments orally is a breakthrough because this is one of the most convenient ways in which to deliver drugs to patients. At present, antibody therapies typically have to be injected into the bloodstream.
The news provider also noted that administering the antibodies orally to treat gastrointestinal problems means the treatment will be locally administered, which could reduce the side effects experienced by patients.
What makes this particular discovery especially exciting is that the antibodies can be manufactured using soybean seeds or yeast cells in a straightforward food manufacturing process.
By taking this approach, the team has potentially found a way to remove the need for an expensive purification process. The treatment also doesn’t require encapsulation – it’s a powder containing antibodies that can be added to food and eaten.
One thing they will need to consider going forward is which pharma packaging solutions are most appropriate for this kind of product.
Eric Cox has helped the group to test their technology in young piglets, who are susceptible to an infection that causes diarrhea shortly after weaning. At present, antibiotics are the only treatment for this infection, but this raises a host of issues for pig producers.
A trial with piglets has shown the new antibody treatment could be an effective and safe option. Due to its success here, Mr Callewaert revealed that tests are now being carried out to see how the antibody treatment could be used in humans.
Speaking to the news provider, he explained why they’re hopeful of seeing results. “Since the human and pig guts are strikingly similar, the lab is already exploring this technology for preventing and treating human gut infections and reducing symptoms in gastric diseases such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis,” Mr Callewaert stated.
For those suffering from Crohn’s disease, a new treatment could be welcome news. The NHS explains that there is no cure for the condition, but that it’s typically managed using steroid tablets to reduce inflammation in the digestive system, medication to prevent the inflammation recurring, or surgery.