The gastrointestinal microbiome, small bowel bacterial overgrowth, and microbiome modulators in cystic fibrosis

Abstract

People with cystic fibrosis (pwCF) have an altered gastrointestinal microbiome. These individuals also demonstrate propensity toward developing small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). The dysbiosis present has intestinal and extraintestinal implications, including potential links with the higher rates of gastrointestinal malignancies described in CF. Given these implications, there is growing interest in therapeutic options for microbiome modulation. Alternative therapies, including probiotics and prebiotics, and current CF transmembrane conductance regulator gene modulators are promising interventions for ameliorating gut microbiome dysfunction in pwCF. This article will characterize and discuss the current state of knowledge and expert opinions on gut dysbiosis and SIBO in the context of CF, before reviewing the current evidence supporting gut microbial modulating therapies in CF.