Amoeba Protects Kids from Deadly Colitis Infections

Researchers used a harmless amoeba to safeguard children from dangerous colitis (C. difficile) infections, revealed a study.

Researchers used a harmless amoeba to safeguard children from dangerous colitis (C. difficile) infections, revealed a study.

The Hartwell Foundation which supports early-stage, cutting-edge biomedical research to benefit children of the United States will provide UVA researcher Shannon Moonah, MD, $100,000 each year for three years.

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‘C. difficile (colitis) infections are typically treated with antibiotics, but children who contract the infections offer to suffer repeated bouts. For some, it can become incurable, requiring the removal of the large intestine to prevent death.’

The funds will support his effort to engineer an amoeba – a single-celled organism – to deliver antibodies that can prevent and treat potentially deadly colitis (C. difficile) infections in young children.

"New options are needed for C. difficile – there is no vaccine to protect at-risk children, and treatments for severe disease are suboptimal. Cell-based therapies like amoeba hold the promise of safe and effective drug delivery systems," said Moonah, a physician-scientist in UVA’s Division of Infectious Diseases and International Health. "I am beyond grateful for the generous support of The Hartwell Foundation to help develop this novel approach."

"We are delighted to have this vitally important research honored by The Hartwell Foundation," said Melur "Ram" Ramasubramanian, UVA vice president for research. "Shannon Moonah is a great example of the innovative and exciting biomedical researchers at UVA."

About C. difficile

C. difficile (colitis) strikes 24,000 children in the United States each year and many more worldwide. The number of U.S. cases is growing, prompting the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to classify C. difficile as an immediate public health threat that requires aggressive action. The infection causes severe diarrhea and is especially dangerous to children with health conditions such as cancer, bowel diseases and cystic fibrosis.

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Moonah, however, aims to protect children from becoming so sick. He would genetically engineer a single-celled amoeba often found in the gut called "Entamoeba." Entamoeba is a parasite, but Moonah aims to use gene editing to turn it into a powerful ally against C. difficile (colitis) infections.

Moonah plans to introduce a harmless form of Entamoeba into the intestine to deliver specific antibodies to inhibit damaging toxins produced by C. difficile. If his innovation works, this would be the first time an amoeba or other protozoan had been genetically engineered to deliver a treatment this way.

Antibiotics Are the Main Cause of C. Difficile Epidemic
Cases of C. difficile fell only when fluoroquinolone use was restricted and used in a more targeted way as one part of many efforts to control the outbreak.

Ultimately, Moonah aims to turn his "protozoan technology and drug delivery system" into a platform used routinely to deliver a wide range of drugs to battle gut problems in young children. The strategy could offer many benefits, he says, including lessening antibiotic use amid the growing problem of antibiotic resistance.

"If successful, there will be many potential applications to treat other intestinal diseases," Moonah said. "The burden of C. difficile infection is a severe problem, and I am excited for the opportunity to help find new solutions that will lead to healthy children."

About the Hartwell Award

Every year The Hartwell Foundation announces its Top Ten Centers of Biomedical Research in the United States, inviting each center to nominate individuals for a Hartwell Individual Biomedical Research Award. The Hartwell Foundation selected UVA as a center of excellence in a qualification process that considered the institution’s shared values with the Foundation relating to children’s health while also considering the presence of the medical school, biomedical engineering and the quality and scope of ongoing research.

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All nominees for an award must submit a detailed research proposal to the Foundation, undergo a personal interview and make a presentation in defense of their early-stage, innovative and cutting-edge applied biomedical research. The Foundation seeks to support research that addresses a specific and compelling unmet need to improve health outcomes for children.

Source-Eurekalert