An antibiotic-altered microbiota provides fuel for the enteric foe

Abstract

Antibiotic therapies disrupt the intestinal microbiota and render the host susceptible to enteric infections. A recent report by Ng et al. explores the ability of two intestinal pathogens (Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium and Clostridium difficile) to use this disruption to their advantage and consume host carbohydrates that would otherwise be unavailable in the presence of a normal gut microbiota. © 2014 IBCB, SIBS, CAS All rights reserved.