Microbiology Society microbiome safety workshop
The Microbiology Society held a workshop on Wednesday 24 – Thursday 25 January 2024 in London to discuss the current research landscape around the assessment of the safety of microbiome perturbations by chemicals and probiotics. The workshop was co-chaired by Prof. Lindsay Hall (University of Birmingham) and Dr. Aline Metris (Unilever).
With the advancement of New Generation Sequencing technologies, there has been an increase in research on the human microbiome (gut, oral, skin, lung), and the implications its composition has on health and disease. For example, the composition of oral and skin microbiomes have been shown to have important roles in protecting human health through their resilience and stability. It has also been proven that the efficacy of some drugs are affected by human gut microbiota.
This event brought together parties from academia, industry, funding bodies and regulators in a mixed format of presentations and breakout sessions. Through these sessions, participants contributed towards planned outputs with significant potential impact on this field of research.
A detailed summary from Dr. Metris (Workshop Co-chair) is available to read here.
You can watch many of the presentations for Day 1 and Day 2 clicking the button below.
Day 1 presentationsDay 2 presentations
Day 1: Current review of health implications – identifying the potential health implications mediated by microbiome changes induced by using products targeting human oral/skin/gut microbiomes:
Nick Jakubovics (Newcastle University, UK) - Identifying the potential health implications mediated by microbiome changes induced by using products targeting human oral microbiomes
Greg Hillebrand (University of Cincinnati, USA) - Stability and resilience of the skin microbiome amidst daily skin care practices
Alan Walker (University of Aberdeen, UK) - Assessing potential health implications of interventions targeting the human gut microbiome
Day 1: Existing approaches in the industry – assessing the existing approaches and gaps to demonstrate that products safely modulate the microbiome
Adam Baker (Chr. Hansen, Denmark) - The critical role of industrial production in developing safe and scientifically backed microbes for food and supplements
Aline Metris (Unilever SEAC, UK) - A tiered approach to risk assess microbiome perturbations induced by application of beauty and personal care products
Jay Tiesman (P&G, USA) - Cosmetics and personal care technical perspective - tools for microbiome safety measures
Olaperi (Peri) Aghadiuno (VCLS, UK) - How to adopt a risk minimisation approach when it comes to regulatory challenges related to ensuring the safety of microbiome products
Andrea Doolan (Atlantia Clinical Trials Ltd, Ireland) - A therapeutics / clinical perspective on the existing approaches and gaps to demonstrate that products safely modulate the microbiome
Day 2: Future prospects
Robert Finn, (EMBL-EBI, UK) - What has metagenomics told us about the human microbiome?
Leo Lathi (University of Turku, Finland) - Assessing the drivers of microbiome variation: the role of AI?
Catherine O’Neill (University of Manchester, UK) - Skin cell culture for assessing host-microbiome interactions
Tamas Korcsmaros (Imperial College London, UK) - Intestinal organoids as in vitro models for assessing host-microbiome interactions and safety of intervention
