Table 2.

The early years of microbiota research in germ-free mice

Model system and intervention	Findings	References
Germ-free mice vs. conventional mice	Significantly milder GVHD symptoms and longer survival after MHC*-disparate allo-HCT in germ-free mice	Connell, 19654 Jones, 19715 Van Bekkum, 19616 Van Bekkum,19777
	Intact GVT and reduced GVHD after MHC-disparate allo-HCT in germ-free mice	Pollard, 19739 Pollard, 197410 Truitt, 197411 Truitt, 197612
Germ-free mice vs. conventional mice vs. mice with consortium of colonization resistant intestinal microflora (anaerobes)	Significantly milder GVHD symptoms and longer survival in both germ-free and colonization resistant mice whose microflora was predominantly anaerobic Conventionalization of all mice after 40 days did not did not induce GVHD in gnotobiotic mice that received colonization resistant microflora but did in conventional mice treated with antibiotcs	Van Bekkum, 197413
Antibiotic-treated mice vs. untreated mice	Significantly milder GVHD in xenogeneic rat-to-mouse HCT; GVHD histology present but less inflamed in antibiotic-treated mice compared to conventional mice	Heit, 19738
	Significantly milder GVHD symptoms and longer survival after MHC-disparate allo-HCT in antibiotic-treated mice	Van Bekkum, 196714 Heit, 197715
Selective antibiotic decontamination of Enterobacteriaceae vs. conventional mice	Mitigation of delayed-type GVHD by selective decontamination of Enterobacteriaceae was minor and dependent on mouse model	Veenendaal, 198816

^*MHC=Major histocompatibility