Development of a simulator to evaluate the efficacy of an antibacterial agent to resident and resistant bacteria

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K21875
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Research (Exploratory)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Medium-sized Section 90:Biomedical engineering and related fields
• Research Institution: Tohoku University
• Principal Investigator: Ishikawa Takuji 東北大学, 医工学研究科, 教授 (20313728)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-07-30 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 腸内フローラ / シミュレーション / 可視化実験 / 大腸菌

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Peristaltic movements of juvenile zebrafish were successfully measured. Visualisation of intestinal flow, drug concentrations and endogenous and resistant bacteria was also carried out. These results were published in the American Journal of Physiology, a well-established journal in the field of physiology. Mathematical modelling of the intestinal flora was also carried out, and a continuum analysis describing the macroscopic bacterial accumulation was performed. It was then clarified that the macroscopic distribution of E. coli in the gut is produced by a combination of physical and biological factors, and it was shown that the bacterial dynamics in the gut environment can be accurately described by a mathematical model. The results were published in BMC Biology, a well-established journal in the field of biology.

Free Research Field

バイオメカニクス

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

ヒトの腸内には1kgもの細菌が生息しており、腸内フローラと呼ばれる生態系を形成している。近年、腸内フローラが宿主の様々な疾患と密接に関わっていることが明らかとなり、腸内フローラの違いを利用した診断や、糞便微生物叢移植などの治療技術の革新が期待されている。こうした技術革新の核となるのは、腸内フローラを予測し、制御する技術であるが、現状では腸内フローラの形成メカニズムは解明されておらず、極めて困難と言わざるを得ない。本成果は、こうした現状を打破し、腸内フローラの形成を予測し制御するための礎となる。