Microbiome

Medical

Antibiotics impair flu vaccine by disrupting gut bacteria

A study is offering the first evidence in humans to suggest depletion of gut microbiome diversity by antibiotics can reduce the efficacy of a vaccination.

Researchers have investigated how metabolite-producing bacteria could mediate the anti-aging effect seen in metformin, a common diabetes medication

Medical

Microbiome influences anti-aging effect of diabetes drug

Research has revealed the effects of a common type 2 diabetes drug are regulated by metabolites produced by certain gut bacteria.

Specifically engineered peptides have been designed to help modulate the gut microbiome into healthy profiles

Medical

Researchers propose new way to remodel gut microbiome

A new method presents an alternative strategy to fecal transplants or pro-biotics.

The study hypothesizes microgravity as the main cause of the changes seen in the gut microbiome of astronauts

Science

What causes gut microbiome changes in astronauts?

A new analytical tool suggests distinct microbiome changes caused by spaceflight are most likely caused by microgravity.

Fecal transplants are helping expand koala microbiomes, allowing the marsupials to eat a wider range of eucalypts and possibly survive habitat loss

Environment

Fecal transplants may save Australia’s koala population

A new study led by University of Queensland researchers is suggesting fecal transplants may help koalas in Australia adapt to new habitats.

New research suggests a high-fat diet lowers the concentration of an important intestinal immune cell that regulates the microbial population in our gut, and it is through this mechanism that obesity can lead to inflammation and diabetes

Medical

Study finds key gut immune molecule links obesity, the microbiome, and metabolic disorders

New research demonstrates how a high-fat diet can disrupt levels of an intestinal immune cell known to help regulate microbial populations in the gut. The study shows how low-levels of this molecule result in increased growth of harmful gut bacteria, leading to inflammation and insulin resistance.

A new study revealed millions of genes unique to individual microbiome samples, suggesting the genetic diversity in microbiome from person to person could be enormous

Science

More genes in the human microbiome than stars in the observable universe

A team of US scientists is embarking on an immense project to catalog all the genes in the collective human microbiome. In the first published study an astounding 46 million genes have been chronicled from just 3,500 human microbiome samples. Half of those genes are unique to single human samples.

Researchers have discovered small proteins produced by the human microbiome that have gone undetected due to their tiny size

Biology

Incredible Stanford study discovers thousands of novel proteins produced by human microbiome

A remarkable new study revealed thousands of previously undiscovered small proteins produced by bacteria in the human microbiome. Almost all of these proteins serve unknown functions in the human body and the researchers suggest the discovery opens up a new frontier for future drug development.

A new study has found an association between whole body vibration therapy and an increase in beneficial gut bacteria and anti-inflammatory molecules in mice

Medical

Mouse study suggests vibration therapy can reduce inflammation and improve the microbiome

A new study is suggesting vibration therapy can beneficially alter the gut microbiome, and reduce diabetes-related inflammation. The research at this point has only been verified in mice, and prior human vibration therapy studies suggest these results may not broadly translate to human treatments.

Researchers have developed antibiotics that target only specific strains of bacteria

Medical

Selective antibiotics target specific bacteria to spare the microbiome

Antibiotics aren’t picky, blasting good and bad bacteria alike and messing up the delicate balance of the gut microbiome. But now researchers have developed a more targeted approach, with drugs that are able to zero in on specific species of bacteria.

Researchers have discovered the immune system can directly alter populations of certain bacteria in the gut that affect how dietary fats are absorbed

Medical

New research uncovers compelling link between gut bacteria, obesity and the immune system

A new study 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.

The capsule has so far been successfully tested on pigs and non-human primates, but not on people

Medical

Microbiome-assessing capsule gathers gut bacteria

The abundance or lack of certain types of gut bacteria has been linked to everything from depression to heart disease to childhood asthma. Non-invasively determining which microbes make up a person's "gut microbiome," however, can be difficult – which is why a new 3D-printed capsule was developed.