Research Gut Microbiome

The Human Gut Microbiome in Health and Disease

This study explains that our gut is home to trillions of microbes—mostly bacteria—that play a vital role in our health. These microbes help digest food that our bodies can’t break down on their own, produce important vitamins like B and K, and support the immune system. They also send signals to other parts of the body, including the brain. When the balance of these microbes is disturbed (a condition called dysbiosis), it can lead to issues like gut disorders, obesity, and diabetes. Overall, the gut microbiota acts like a hidden organ, helping to keep the body running smoothly.

Small intestine vs. colon ecology and physiology: Why it matters in probiotic administration

The article titled "Small intestine vs. colon ecology and physiology: Why it matters in microbiome research" discusses the differences between the small intestine and the colon in terms of their structure, function, and microbial communities. It highlights how the small intestine has a more diverse microbiota due to its unique environment, including factors like nutrient availability and immune responses. Understanding these differences is crucial for microbiome research, as it can impact the interpretation of microbial roles in health and disease. The article emphasizes the need for more focused studies on the small intestine to gain a comprehensive understanding of the human microbiome.

20 Things you Didn’t Know About the Human gut Microbiome

This brief review reveals insights into the human gut microbiome—an ecosystem of roughly 100 trillion microorganisms spanning up to 5,000 species that outnumber our own cells and weigh about two kilograms—and emphasizes that it's a metabolic and immune "organ" in its own right. It highlights how advances in DNA sequencing and metagenomics have shifted understanding from simply cataloging which microbes are present to exploring what they actually do.

Interplay between gut microbiota and antimicrobial peptides

The article explains how the gut microbiome and antimicrobial peptides—small proteins produced by the body’s immune cells and gut lining—work closely together to maintain a healthy intestinal environment. These peptides help control microbial populations, preventing harmful pathogens from overgrowing, while the microbiome itself can influence how these peptides are produced. Disruption in this interplay—due to factors like poor diet, infection, or inflammation—can lead to imbalances linked to gastrointestinal disease, allergies, and metabolic disorders.

Healthy soils for healthy plants for healthy humans

This article talks about how healthy soil helps grow healthy plants, and in turn, healthy plants help keep people healthy. It explains that tiny helpful microbes living in soil and around plant roots are similar to those in our gut and are important for good nutrition and a strong immune system. The article says that farming methods that protect these good soil microbes can lead to better food and better health for humans. It suggests that taking care of soil health should be a priority to support overall well-being.

The gut microbiome of healthy long-living people

The article investigates the gut microbiota of elderly individuals who maintain good health and longevity. It highlights that, in contrast to the general trend of reduced microbial diversity with age, these individuals exhibit a more balanced and diverse gut microbiome. This distinct microbiome composition is associated with lower inflammation levels, better metabolic health, and a reduced risk of age-related diseases such as neurodegenerative disorders. The study suggests that maintaining a healthy gut microbiome may play a crucial role in promoting healthy aging and longevity.

Unlocking the Secrets of the Human Gut Microbiota

This foundational review explores the enormous diversity of microbes in the human gut, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, and archaea. It emphasizes how this community isn’t just a passive passenger but actively influences digestion, nutrient absorption, immune system development, and even mental health through the gut-brain axis. The authors highlight that a balanced microbiome (eubiosis) supports barrier integrity and protects against pathogens, while dysbiosis can contribute to inflammatory diseases, metabolic disorders, and autoimmune conditions. The review also introduces techniques like 16S rRNA sequencing and metagenomics that allow researchers to map and understand microbial communities in unprecedented detail.

Human Gut Microbiota in Health and Disease: Unveiling the Relationship

This article provides an overview of how gut microbiota balance affects human health and disease. It emphasizes that not only the presence of specific microbes but their interactions, metabolic output, and community stability are critical. Dysbiosis—imbalances in microbial composition—has been linked to metabolic syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), obesity, mental health disorders, and immune dysregulation. The paper also discusses the role of microbial metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and secondary bile acids in regulating immune and metabolic pathways. Understanding these relationships is crucial for designing dietary, probiotic, or prebiotic interventions that restore microbial balance.

The Gut Microbiome: A Core Regulator of Metabolism

This review focuses on the microbiome’s role in metabolic health, highlighting how gut microbes contribute to nutrient breakdown, energy harvest, and signalling to host tissues. Microbial metabolites, especially SCFAs, regulate glucose and lipid metabolism, maintain intestinal barrier integrity, and modulate inflammation. Dysbiosis can lead to metabolic dysfunction, contributing to obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The authors also discuss how interventions like diet, fibre supplementation, and probiotics can influence microbiome composition and metabolic outcomes. This article underscores the microbiome as a potential therapeutic target for metabolic disorders.

Correlation Between Human Gut Microbiome and Diseases

This review explores connections between microbiome composition and a wide array of diseases, including autoimmune disorders, mental health conditions, metabolic disorders, and infections. It emphasizes that dysbiosis can either exacerbate disease or precede its onset, pointing to both diagnostic and therapeutic opportunities. The authors highlight specific taxa linked to disease states and discuss the mechanisms, such as increased intestinal permeability, altered immune responses, and microbial metabolite imbalance. Importantly, it emphasizes that restoring microbial balance via diet, prebiotics, probiotics, or even faecal microbiota transplantation could mitigate disease progression.

The Microbiome as a Major Function of the Gastrointestinal Tract and Its Role in Micronutrient Metabolism and Chronic Disease

This article focuses on the gut microbiome as an integral “organ” of the gastrointestinal tract. It discusses how microbes assist in digestion, vitamin synthesis, immune system maturation, and maintenance of the epithelial barrier. The review highlights that microbiome function—not just species composition—is key: the same species may act differently depending on context and diet. Dysbiosis can lead to barrier dysfunction, low-grade inflammation, and metabolic disturbances. This article reinforces the concept of the microbiome as a dynamic regulator of host health.

Microbiome 101: Studying, Analyzing, and Interpreting Gut Microbiome Data for Clinicians

This article explains the basics of the gut microbiome for doctors and health professionals. It describes what the microbiome is, how it can change over time, and how factors like diet, medicine, and lifestyle affect it. The authors outline common ways to study gut bacteria, such as different types of DNA testing, and warn that results can vary depending on the method used. They also point out that there is no single “normal” microbiome and that the science is still developing, but understanding it may help improve future medical care.

Neurotransmitter modulation by the gut microbiota

The paper reviews how bacteria in the gut can influence chemicals used by our brain—called neurotransmitters—like serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, and GABA. These gut microbes don’t just live quietly: they can make these chemicals themselves or change how our bodies produce or break them down. Animal studies show that these microbial effects may influence behaviour, mood, gut movement, and even diseases. Early human studies suggest similar possibilities, but the author says we still need lots more research to know exactly how these microbial-driven changes affect health in people, and whether we can use them for treatments.

Revised Estimates for the Number of Human and Bacteria Cells in the Body

Previous claims that bacteria in the human body outnumber human cells by about 10 to 1 are incorrect. The authors calculated that in a typical 70-kg adult, there are about 3.0×10¹³ human cells and about 3.8×10¹³ bacterial cells. That means the two are actually of a similar order of magnitude—not hugely different. Also, despite being similar in number, bacteria make up much less mass (only ~0.2 kg) compared with the human cells.

Dietary emulsifiers directly alter human microbiota composition and gene expression ex vivo potentiating intestinal inflammation

This research investigates how common food additives—specifically the emulsifiers carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) and polysorbate 80 (P80)—affect the gut microbiota. Using an advanced laboratory model that simulates the human gut, the study found that both emulsifiers can directly alter the composition and gene expression of the microbiota. These changes were associated with increased levels of pro-inflammatory markers, such as flagellin, suggesting that emulsifiers may promote intestinal inflammation. Additionally, when the altered microbiota was transferred to germ-free mice, it induced similar inflammatory responses, indicating that the emulsifiers' effects on the microbiota can influence host health.

Types and origins of bacterial membrane vesicles

This is a review of bacterial membrane vesicles (MVs). MVs are small, spherical structures released by bacteria into their surroundings. These vesicles play crucial roles in various biological processes, including communication between bacteria, interaction with host cells, and the transport of enzymes and toxins.The review categorizes MVs based on their origin and composition, discussing how different types are formed and their specific functions. It also explores the implications of MVs in health and disease, highlighting their potential as targets for therapeutic interventions.

The cellulose-degrading microbial community of the human gut varies according to the presence or absence of methanogens

In this study, the researchers looked at which gut bacteria can break down cellulose in people who either do or don’t produce methane (methanogens). They found that in methane-excreting individuals, cellulose-degrading bacteria were mostly from the Firmicutes group, while in non-methane excretors they were more from Bacteroidetes. These differences weren’t just in species, but also in what types of cellulose they could break down and how much hydrogen they produced during fermentation. Overall, the presence of methanogens seems to influence both the structure and function of cellulose-degrading bacteria in the human gut.

THE GUT MICROBIOME