How gut bacteria could protect young adults from cancer

Colorectal cancer is considered a disease of old age, but young adults are increasingly affected. The research network »PerMiCCion«, led by Prof. Gianni Panagiotou at the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (Leibniz-HKI) and the University of Jena, is investigating why this is the case and what role the microbes in the gut play. The consortium, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR), is entering a second four-year funding phase. The project will receive a total of more than four million euros over eight years.

»Our gut bacteria influence inflammation, the immune system, and even how tumor cells grow,« explains Gianni Panagiotou from the Friedrich Schiller University Jena and the Cluster of Excellence »Balance of the Microverse«External link, who heads the department Microbiome Dynamics at the Leibniz-HKI. »If we understand which microbes protect our health and which harm it, we can lay the foundation for personalized cancer prevention.«

Over the past four years, the »PerMiCCion« team has built up one of the most comprehensive collections of data on the microbiome of young colorectal cancer patients in Germany. Using genetic analyses of the gut microbiome, studies of microbial metabolites, computer-assisted evaluations, and machine learning models, the team generated and integrated large datasets capturing microbial genetic material, metabolic activity and nutritional factors.

The researchers identified a characteristic pattern of bacteria, fungi and viruses that occurs more frequently in patients with colorectal cancer—a so-called »oncogenic microbiome«. This can promote inflammation, form toxic or growth-promoting metabolic products and influence the body’s immune response. Knowledge of this microbiome now forms an important basis for the project team to develop novel diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for personalized prevention and treatment strategies.

In the upcoming funding period, the scientists want to find out whether certain gut microbes influence the risk of cancer even in healthy young adults—and whether targeted nutritional strategies or novel probiotics can restore the balance of the microbiome. The aim is to develop individually tailored preventive measures to help reduce the rising number of bowel cancer cases under the age of 50 in the long term.

Research with and for those affected

In addition to scientific partner institutions from Bonn, Göttingen, Freiburg, Heidelberg, and Münster, the consortium also includes companies and three patient organizations. Together with the German Foundation for Young Adults with CancerExternal link, »PerMiCCion« has already published a German-language series of videosExternal link in which those affected talk about their experiences.

In the second phase of the project, the Foundation Perspectives for People (Perspektiven für MenschenExternal link) will join as a new partner to disseminate the results even more widely in society. The European organization Digestive Cancers EuropeExternal link is also supporting the project. »This close collaboration between science, patients and politics is crucial in order to sustainably transfer cancer research into prevention,« emphasizes Panagiotou. In this way, »PerMiCCion« aims to help slow down the rising number of early colorectal cancer cases and give young adults better prospects for their health.

Background

»PerMiCCion« (Personalized Microbiome-Based Approaches to Early Onset Colorectal Cancer Prevention, Diagnosis and Management) brings together six research institutions, three industrial partners, and three patient organizations. The project will run from May 2022 to April 2030 and is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) as part of the German National Decade Against CancerExternal link, which addresses the growing number of early colorectal cancer cases.