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The researchers determined that the mix of bacteria that live in the nose correlates with the type and severity of the developing cold symptoms.
For example, people whose nose is rich in staphylococcus Bacteria have had more serious nasal symptoms than people with colds who have fewer staphylococci, new research shows – although their colds are caused by the same strain of virus.
The researchers found that the bacteria in the volunteers' noses fell into six different types of nasal microbiomes. The different models were associated with differences in severity of symptoms. The compositions also correlated with viral load – the amount of cold virus inside the body.
The discovery surprised even long-time researchers who succeeded.
"The first surprise was that you can identify those different buckets in which people fit in, and the fact that the buckets seem to have an impact on your reaction to the virus and on your condition was also interesting," said Ronald B. Turner, from the Medical School of the University of Virginia. "There were effects on the viral load and the amount of virus that you throw into your nasal secretions. So, the background microbiome, the bacterial background pattern of your nose, influenced how you reacted to the virus and how sick you were.
The role of your inhabitants
To be clear, the microorganisms living in your nose do not cause cold. The cold itself is caused by a cold virus, of course. Researchers can not tell if the microorganisms in your nose are really responsible for the differences in severity of your cold symptoms, and more research is needed to determine it.
"What we report is an association, so it's quite possible that the fact that you have staph in your nose and you have more symptoms is not directly related," Turner said. "It may well be that there are underlying characteristics of the host that make you susceptible to staph in the nose and also make you more likely to get sick."
For example, your genes could be responsible for both the composition of your nasal microbiome and your reaction to the cold virus, or it could be much more complicated than that.
"There are environmental characteristics that also influence it – whether you are exposed to pollution or that you are allergic or that several factors can have an impact – I do not know," said Mr. Turner. "But I suspect that there is an interaction between the host and the environment and the pathogen that determines what you end up with."
The researchers tested 152 nasal microbiomes from participants before and after they transmitted the cold virus, excluding the possibility that the virus or the resulting disease significantly alters the composition of the microbiome.
Could probiotics shorten your cold symptoms?
Turner and his colleagues were interested in whether giving people probiotics (beneficial bacteria) could improve their cold symptoms or affect the composition of their nasal microbiomes. The answer: No.
The researchers gave the study participants a probiotic to drink. Not only has this not affected the microbiomes in their nose, but it does not have much effect on the microbiomes in their stomach either.
"We can detect the probiotic in the intestine very frequently. Not in everyone, but very frequently, "said Turner. "It did not really affect the microbiome model of the intestine. So, it's not as if the probiotic is substantially altering the microbiome of the intestine.
It is possible that the administration of a probiotic directly into the nose, for example by spraying, has more effect. But Turner, who has been researching colds for decades, is skeptical that it would make a big difference.
"It's not going to be that simple, I do not think, saying," OK, what happens if you give a probiotic? "He said. "One of the things that would be interesting to ask, and it would be a completely different study: what happens if you give antibiotics?" Can you change the nasal flora by administering antibiotics? And is it a good thing or is it a bad thing? These are all unknowns.
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