Insects as models to study the impact of antibiotics and microbiota therapies on the human gut microbiome: reducing the use of animals in research

Gooch, Harriet (2022) Insects as models to study the impact of antibiotics and microbiota therapies on the human gut microbiome: reducing the use of animals in research. Doctoral thesis, University of East Anglia.

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Abstract

The human microbiome is rapidly becoming recognised as a central player in human health, with both a metabolic and immunological function. The makeup of the gut microbiome, especially in infants, can be a major factor predisposing individuals to diseases such as IBD, diabetes, and necrotising enterocolitis. Recent improvements in sequencing technology and computational analysis of sequencing data have allowed scientists to see in detail how changes in the microbiome accompany different lifestyles and health conditions, but the causality and mechanisms of these associations are still not fully understood. There is also a need to develop and test potential therapeutics targeting the microbiome.

Mice are the most used in vivo model for the microbiome but pose issues in terms of cost, time and ethics. This project’s aim has been to investigate the potential of using the Greater Wax Moth, Galleria mellonella, as an alternative model for the human infant gut microbiome. Galleria has been gaining popularity as a model host due to its ease of experimentation, simpler regulatory framework and fast life cycle.

In this thesis I have shown that, using antibiotics, Galleria can be cleared of its native gut bacteria. Larvae, both those that have been antibiotic-treated and those that have not, can then be colonised with a range of foreign bacteria. I have shown this is possible through both feeding and injection of bacterial culture, and from faecal slurry through feeding. Larvae colonised with labelled Enterococcus mundtii pass those bacteria onto the next generation.

This thesis also describes the native Galleria microbiome of both lab-reared and wild larvae, which is informs the use of Galleria as a model. Through this investigation, we discovered a novel species of Enterococcus and carried out a characterisation of this species.

These results will help guide any development of Galleria as a model host for human commensal bacteria.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Science > School of Biological Sciences
Depositing User:	Chris White
Date Deposited:	28 Feb 2023 14:10
Last Modified:	28 Feb 2023 14:10
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/91302
DOI:

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