The role of gut microbiota in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is known as a functional gastrointestinal disorder that has different effects on the large intestine and caused malfunction of bowel and colon tissues, which leads to chronic diarrhea, constipation, abdominal pain, cramps, and bloating. Genetic pre determinants and environmental factors including; stress, age, diet, geographical features, use of antibiotics, and more importantly gut microbiota (GM) are implicated in the development of IBS. In the present review, by using free search engines providing biomedical and clinical literature (Science Direct, PubMed, and Google Scholar) we have evaluated the association of GM and IBS and the role of human interventions such as probiotics, synbiotic, prebiotics, and the fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) as potential therapeutic methods within the treatment of IBS. Current advances in molecular approaches have broadened our understanding of GM and the significant impact of microbial communities on human wellbeing. The imbalanced distribution of microbial communities resides in the human intestine (intestinal dysbiosis) has been associated with IBS development. Due to current challenges in the treatment of IBS, various manipulation of the GM as a new approach for IBS remedy has attracted much attention in recent years. Hence, scientific literature confirms that the manipulation of GM with prebiotic, probiotic, and synbiotic interventions as well as FMT can significantly improve the GM composition/balances and prevent negative effects of dysbiosis GM in patients with symptoms of IBS. Copyright (C) 2021 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.