title: Human pharyngeal microbiome may play a protective role in respiratory tract infections.
abstract: The human pharyngeal microbiome, which resides at the juncture of digestive and respiratory tracts, may have an active role in the prevention of respiratory tract infections, similar to the actions of the intestinal microbiome against enteric infections. Recent studies have demonstrated that the pharyngeal microbiome comprises an abundance of bacterial species that interacts with the local epithelial and immune cells, and together, they form a unique micro-ecological system. Most of the microbial species in microbiomes are obligate symbionts constantly adapting to their unique surroundings. Indigenous commensal species are capable of both maintaining dominance and evoking host immune responses to eliminate invading species. Temporary damage to the pharyngeal microbiome due to the impaired local epithelia is also considered an important predisposing risk factor for infections. Therefore, reinforcement of microbiome homeostasis to prevent invasion of infection-prone species would provide a novel treatment strategy in addition to antibiotic treatment and vaccination. Hence continued research efforts on evaluating probiotic treatment and developing appropriate procedures are necessary to both prevent and treat respiratory infections.
authors: Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing 100044, China. Electronic address: zcgao@bjmu.edu.cn.
authors: Zhancheng
authors: Z
authors: Gao
authors: CAS Key Laboratory of Genome Sciences and Information, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors: Yu
authors: Y
authors: Kang
authors: CAS Key Laboratory of Genome Sciences and Information, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors: Jun
authors: J
authors: Yu
authors: CAS Key Laboratory of Genome Sciences and Information, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors: Lufeng
authors: L
authors: Ren
mesh_terms: D006706:Homeostasis; D006801:Humans; D064307:Microbiota / Q000276:immunology*; D010614:Pharynx / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology*; D019936:Probiotics / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D013559:Symbiosis
keywords: Homeostasis; Pharyngeal microbiome; Probiotics; Respiratory tract infections; Restoration balance of microbiome