Science talent Carlos Voogdt from Utrecht University to foreign top institute for research on intestinal bacteria and medication
Scientist Carlos Voogdt received an NWO grant to study for two years in Heidelberg, Germany. Voogdt will investigate how intestinal bacteria influence our response to medication.
Intestinal bacteria can change medicines taken before these reach their target. Voogdt will determine which bacteria are responsible for this, how they do this exactly, and the consequences of this bacterial activity for our intestinal cells. He will do this research at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) from the summer of 2020.
Effect of medication
Every person has a unique composition of micro-organisms that live in the digestive tract. In particular, the many bacteria in our intestines use an amazing diversity of enzymes to extract molecules from what we eat, which they need for their survival and growth. This often works out well for us because these bacterial enzymes also produce as a by-product essential vitamins and nutrients for us. However, these bacterial enzymes can also, often by accident, chemically alter other molecules such as orally taken drugs. As a result, such drugs may become less, more, or differently effective. In addition to the fact that bacteria can change drugs, drugs can also influence the behavior of bacteria, causing them to excrete other molecules or even changing the composition of the bacterial population in the intestine.
‘Bacterial enzymes can, often by accident, alter orally taken drugs’
Why medication works for some and not for others
Because everyone has different bacteria with different enzymatic capacities, it is very likely that gut bacteria play a major role in interpersonal variation in the effectiveness of medication and related side effects. An example of this is the drug L-dopa, which is used in the treatment of Parkinson's disease. To be effective, L-dopa must be absorbed from the gut and cross the blood-brain barrier. Some Parkinson's patients, however, benefit little from L-dopa treatment because the bacterium Enterococcus faecalis, already enzymatically converts L-dopa in the intestine to dopamine (which cannot cross the blood-brain barrier).
Study a thousand combinations
To better understand the effect and side effects of medication, it is very important to gain insight into the interactions between bacteria and drugs, and what the consequences of these interactions are on our body cells. In my project, funded with the Rubicon grant, I will systematically and on a large scale expose gut bacteria to drugs and then add this combination to human intestinal cells. With the help of advanced microscopy, mass spectrophotometry, genomics and proteomics techniques, I want to inspect more than thousand unique bacteria-drug-cell combinations for interesting abnormalities. The ultimate goal is to find new molecules that arise during bacterial-drug interactions and to map how intestinal cells react to these new molecules.
New knowledge, experience and connections
Of course, I am very happy that the NWO awarded the Rubicon grant to my project! It feels fantastic to know that the jury appreciates the idea for my project and wants to support it with this grant. The Rubicon funding allows me to work independently on this project for two years in one of Europe's best scientific institutes. Here, I will gain a lot of new knowledge, experience and connections, which is very important for building an independent career in science and of course to continue to discover!
Adjustments due to the coronavirus
NWO is acting in line with the measures that the Cabinet is taking to tackle the coronavirus. The current circumstances call for appropriate measures. This means that the researchers who receive Rubicon funding in this round will only start their research when the situation is safe for them.