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The influence of the microbiome on respiratory health

Abstract

The revolution in microbiota research over the past decade has provided invaluable knowledge about the function of the microbial species that inhabit the human body. It has become widely accepted that these microorganisms, collectively called ‘the microbiota’, engage in networks of interactions with each other and with the host that aim to benefit both the microbial members and the mammalian members of this unique ecosystem. The lungs, previously thought to be sterile, are now known to harbor a unique microbiota and, additionally, to be influenced by microbial signals from distal body sites, such as the intestine. Here we review the role of the lung and gut microbiotas in respiratory health and disease and highlight the main pathways of communication that underlie the gut–lung axis.

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Fig. 1: Lung microbiota in healthy versus diseased settings.
Fig. 2: Major routes of communications within the gut–lung axis.
Fig. 3: Manipulating the microbiome to combat respiratory disease.
Fig. 4: The impact of intranasal or oral exposure to select microbes on respiratory health in animal models.

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Acknowledgements

T.P.W. is supported by a Postdoc Mobility Fellowship from the Swiss National Science Foundation. B.J.M. is an NHMRC Senior Research Fellow and a VESKI Innovation Fellow.

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Wypych, T.P., Wickramasinghe, L.C. & Marsland, B.J. The influence of the microbiome on respiratory health. Nat Immunol 20, 1279–1290 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41590-019-0451-9

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