The gut microbiota and disease - an inner repository for drug discovery

The gut micobiota is tantamount to a hidden inner organ, with a gene content (microbiome) exceeding that of the human genome, a versatile metabolic capacity rivalling that of the liver and a source of signals required for optimal structural and functional development of the host. Although some disorders, such as Crohn's disease, might result from abnormal host-microbe interactions, and others, such as obesity, might be influenced by bacterial-derived metabolic signalling from the gut, the microbiota is primarily a health asset in defence against infectious, inflammatory and probably neoplastic disorders. This inner biomass is a relatively untapped repository for 'mining' bioactives for novel drug discovery.