In an intensive look at the effects of the virus causing COVID-19 on patients’ microbiome – the collection of microorganisms that live in and on the human body – Rutgers scientists found that acute infection disrupts a healthy balance between good and bad microbes in the gut, especially with antibiotic treatment. The work may lead to the development of probiotic supplements to redress any gut imbalances in future patients, the scientists said.

Reporting in the scientific journal Molecular Biomedicine, researchers described the first results of an ongoing study examining the microbiome of patients and volunteers at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick. The study, which began in May 2020, the early days of the pandemic, was designed to zero in on the microbiome because many COVID-19 sufferers complained of gastrointestinal issues – both during the acute phases of their illness and while recuperating. To read the full story.