Engineering Live Biotherapeutics: Microbes for Next-Generation Precision Medicine

Live biotherapeutics represent an emerging frontier in microbiotechnology, offering novel approaches to treat and prevent disease through the administration of engineered or naturally derived microbes. The field sits at the intersection of synthetic biology, microbial genomics, and precision medicine, reflecting rapid technological advances in genome editing, high-throughput screening, and multi-omics integration. Despite promising early outcomes from both clinical and preclinical investigations, challenges remain in translating these discoveries into standardized, safe, and efficacious therapeutics. Key questions persist regarding long-term stability, predictability of microbe–host interactions, and effective strategies to modulate complex host systems through microbial interventions. Recent studies have demonstrated the potential of live biotherapeutics to address conditions spanning metabolic disorders, immune dysfunction, infectious diseases, and neurological conditions. Nevertheless, the gap between laboratory innovation and real-world clinical application continues to call for unified efforts that combine fundamental microbial science with translational medicine.This Research Topic aims to advance the comprehensive understanding and application of live biotherapeutic products (LBPs) as next-generation medical interventions. It seeks to uncover the underlying mechanisms governing microbe–host interactions, improve microbial chassis engineering for safety and efficacy, and develop predictive models for therapeutic outcomes. Contributors are encouraged to explore innovations in design, optimization, and delivery of LBPs while addressing regulatory, ethical, and scalability considerations crucial to clinical adoption. By fostering dialogue across bioengineering, microbiology, clinical science, and data science, this Research Topic aspires to accelerate the translation of microbial research into actionable healthcare solutions.To gather further insights into the integration of engineered microorganisms within precision medicine, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:• Genetic and synthetic biology approaches for microbial chassis optimization• Biosafety, containment, and biocontainment strategies in LBP design• Microbial delivery systems and formulation engineering• Mechanistic insights into microbe–host and microbe–microbe interactions• Computational and data-driven modeling of therapeutic responses• Regulatory and manufacturing challenges in live biotherapeutic developmentPlease note that Microbiotechnology does not consider descriptive studies that are solely based on amplicon (e.g., 16S rRNA) profiles or comparisons of nucleic acid extracts (e.g., metagenomics), unless they are accompanied by a clear hypothesis and experimentation and provide insight into the microbiological system or process being studied.Topic Editor Dr. Jayesh J. Ahire is employed at IDMC Limited, Anand Gujrat, India. All other Topic Editors declare no competing interests with regards to the Research Topic subject. Topic editors: Sezer Okay, ASLIHAN KURT-KIZILDOĞAN, Jayesh Jagannath Ahire Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/82496/engineering-live-biotherapeutics-microbes-for-next-generation-precision-medicine