-
+13 +1
Probiotics’ Effects on the Microbiome Vary Widely
Probiotics are a booming business, with sales in the billions of dollars each year and millions of customers in the US alone. Companies claim that the microbial concoctions can help consumers do anything from lose weight to sleep better, but researchers report inconsistent effects on people’s microbiomes.
-
+25 +1
Do gut bacteria make a second home in our brains?
Preliminary finding turns heads at neuroscience meeting
-
+3 +1
Do gut bacteria make a second home in our brains?
We know the menagerie of microbes in the gut has powerful effects on our health. Could some of these same bacteria be making a home in our brains? A poster presented here this week at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience drew attention with high-resolution microscope images of bacteria apparently penetrating and inhabiting the cells of healthy human brains.
-
+3 +1
How the Western Diet Has Derailed Our Evolution
For the microbiologist Justin Sonnenburg, that career-defining moment—the discovery that changed the trajectory of his research, inspiring him to study how diet and native microbes shape our risk for disease—came from a village in the African hinterlands.
-
+17 +1
Bacteria that consumes CO2 has been discovered at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean
Bacteria that absorbs carbon dioxide (CO2) and potentially turns itself into a food source for other sea creatures has been discovered in one of the deepest parts of the Pacific Ocean. Scientists were studying the ecosystems in the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone (CCFZ), a trench that extends 2.5 miles beneath the surface of the ocean. The area is currently being explored for its deep sea mining potential—contractors from nations including Korea, Germany and the U.K. believe the site to be a promising source of polymetallic nodules, which contain metals like nickel, copper and cobalt.
-
+11 +1
Earth teeming with strange underground organisms which may be planet's first inhabitants
Earth is teeming with life miles beneath the surface, scientists have discovered, leading to speculation that our distant ancestors may even have evolved deep underground. Researchers at the Deep Carbon Observatory (DCO) said they had found barely-living ‘zombie’ bacteria and tiny worms, inhabiting entirely new ecosystems more than three miles into the crust. The lifeforms are so numerous that their mass may be up to 385 times that of all humans.
-
+9 +1
Microbiome—The Missing Link in the Gut-Brain Axis: Focus on Its Role in Gastrointestinal and Mental Health
The central nervous system (CNS) and the human gastrointestinal (GI) tract communicate through the gut-brain axis (GBA). Such communication is bi-directional and involves neuronal, endocrine, and immunological mechanisms. There is mounting data that gut microbiota is the source of a number of neuroactive and immunocompetent substances, which shape the structure and function of brain regions involved in the control of emotions, cognition, and physical activity. Most GI diseases are associated with altered transmission within the GBA that are influenced by both genetic and environmental factors. Current treatment protocols for GI and non-GI...
-
+20 +1
Faecal transplant researchers identify 'super-pooper' donors
Study finds stool transplants from some donors are far more effective than others
-
+8 +1
Pancreatic Cancer Diagnosis on the Tip of Your Tongue…Microbiome
Scientists in China report that differences in the abundance of various types of bacteria living on the tongue can distinguish patients with early pancreatic cancer from healthy individuals. The researchers, headed by a team at Zhejiang University, say that their findings could feasibly help direct the development of diagnostic tests for pancreatic cancer or even hint at new approaches to preventing the disease.
-
+33 +1
Monsanto Roundup Attacks Healthy Gut Bacteria, Lawsuit Says
Now Germany’s Bayer AG, which bought the agriculture giant last year, faces a claim that it deceived home gardeners about Roundup’s impact on their gut bacteria and their health.
-
+11 +1
I had my poo tested to see if the science on gut bacteria stacks up
There are more than 1,000 species of bacteria fighting deep inside your body. But what does the makeup of that bacteria tell us about our health? Your digestive system is about seven metres long — dank folded passageways filled with rotting food and faeces and slick with bile.
-
+26 +1
Men’s beards are dirtier than dogs’ fur, study says
The Hirslanden Clinic looked at the “bacterial load in colony-forming units (CFU) of human-pathogenic microorganisms” in swabs taken from 18 men’s beards and 30 dogs’ necks. All of the guys with beards had high microbial counts, but only 23 of the 30 dogs had the same high count.
-
+10 +1
Differences in gut bacteria can distinguish IBD from IBS
Predictive model to distinguish IBD from IBS via gut microbial composition data proved more accurate than did current fecal biomarker calprotectin.
-
+21 +1
Patient dies from fecal transplant containing drug-resistant bacteria
The donor stool had not been tested for the drug-resistant bacteria before the procedure, the FDA noted.
-
+31 +1
Keeping livestock in the yard just might help your baby’s immune system
Getting up close – and a little dirty – with farm animals just might help us fend off illness, say researchers who’ve further demonstrated the benefits of early exposure to a wide variety of environmental bacteria.
-
+31 +1
New research uncovers compelling link between gut bacteria, obesity and the immune system
An impressive new study from scientists at the University of Utah has described how an impaired immune system can alter the composition of the gut microbiome resulting in metabolic disease and obesity. Demonstrated in mouse experiments, the research suggests certain species of gut bacteria can prevent the gut from absorbing fat, pointing to exciting potential future anti-obesity therapies.
-
+4 +1
This Is What Dietitians Actually Think About Drinking Kombucha
It's all about the probiotics.
-
+33 +1
There are bugs in your lungs. Should you try to keep them healthy?
Up until just a few years ago, scientists thought your lungs were sterile. They were wrong. In the lungs of healthy people live a diverse range of bacteria, fungi and viruses.
-
+4 +1
Why you shouldn't worry about the bacteria in your sponges
Remember that study about the 'dangerous' bacteria hiding in your kitchen sponge? Not so fast
-
+16 +1
Transplanting poop can be beneficial—swapping vaginal fluids may be even better
In the afterglow of successful fecal transplants, researchers are now sniffing around vaginal fluids for the next possible bodily product to improve health—and they’re roused by the possibilities.
Submit a link
Start a discussion