AUTHOR=Baktash Amoe , Terveer Elisabeth M. , Zwittink Romy D. , Hornung Bastian V. H. , Corver Jeroen , Kuijper Ed J. , Smits Wiep Klaas 

TITLE=Mechanistic Insights in the Success of Fecal Microbiota Transplants for the Treatment of Clostridium difficile Infections

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=9

YEAR=2018

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2018.01242

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2018.01242

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p>Fecal microbiota transplantation has proven to be an effective treatment for infections with the gram-positive enteropathogen <italic>Clostridium difficile</italic>. Despite its effectiveness, the exact mechanisms that underlie its success are largely unclear. In this review, we highlight the pleiotropic effectors that are transferred during fecal microbiota transfer and relate this to the <italic>C. difficile</italic> lifecycle. In doing so, we show that it is likely that multiple factors contribute to the elimination of symptoms of <italic>C. difficile</italic> infections after fecal microbiota transplantation.</p>