In recent years, the #microbiota has been linked to many aspects of human health, but until now its impact on the #immune system has only been assumed because of data from animal studies. Scientists from Memorial Sloan Kettering have now, for the first time, shown that the #gut #microbiome directly shapes the makeup of the human immune system, with the results of their study published in Nature.

We all know that lack of #sleep can leave us with feelings of lethargy and in a bad mood, but if this becomes prolonged it can be to the detriment of our overall physical health.  Continuous lack of sleep can put you at risk of serious illness including #obesity, #heart disease and #diabetes, all impacting upon life expectancy. New research from the University of Missouri has now shown that lack of sleep is also altering our #gut #microbiome and may be promoting the aforementioned morbidities.

Two new #microbiome studies were published last month both concluding that analysis of the human microbiome is more accurate in determining the individual’s risk of certain diseases and lifespan than their human genome would be. The first study was conducted by the Harvard Medical School and found that overall, an individual’s microbiome was 20% better in predicting disease than the DNA in their human genome, it was also found to be 50% more accurate at predicting colorectal cancer than the genome. In the second study, conducted in Finland, the focus was placed on finding a link between a person’s microbiome and their life span. Here researchers found that individuals whose microbiome contained a greater number of certain species of bacteria were 15% more likely to die within the following 15 years.

The foods we eat commonly affect our #gut #microbiota by triggering the production of #bacteriophage, which are the viruses that infect and replicate inside #bacteria. The #microbiome is made up of hundreds of different bacteria and the #phages they host. Researchers from San Diego State University have discovered a new way to harness food as medicine by identifying common dietary compounds that can kill specific bacteria without affecting others.

There have been various studies investigating the impact on the #microbiome of different kinds of diets, such as vegetarian versus meat based, but as yet none to question whether the cooking process itself alters the composition of the microbial ecosystems in our guts. Cooking involves exposing food to heat which can change the foods chemical and physical properties. Researchers from the University of California and Harvard University have set out to answer whether these alterations change the microbial environment of the #gut.

Inspired by the success of Faecal microbiota transplantation (#FMT), two teams of scientists have been researching #vaginal #microbiome #transplantation. The belief is that by transplanting a whole microbial colony, rather than just one species (as happens with a #probiotic approach), we can help the beneficial microbes effectively gain control over the #pathogens. With faecal transplants becoming one of the most successful first-line treatments for Clostridium difficile and other gut infections, the hope is that vaginal microbiome transplants can offer the same hope for those with vaginal infections.

#Rheumatoid #arthritis is a long-term autoimmune condition that causes pain, swelling and stiffness in the #joints. A combination of genetic and environmental factors are suspected to be the cause for rheumatoid arthritis (#RA) including hormonal changes, exposure to dust and other allergens as well as some bacterial and viral infections. A team of researchers from Keele University, Haywood Academic Rheumatology Centre and Quadram Institute Bioscience have been studying the link between taking #antibiotics and going on to develop RA.

Researchers from Oxford, Cardiff and Southampton Universities have been studying the dangers of overprescribing #antibiotics for common #respiratory tract illnesses in children, concluding that children given two or more courses in a year are 30% more likely to have further doses fail. The research was published by the British Journal of General Practice and analysed patient records of more than 250,000 preschool children.

Frontiers of Microbiology have published a new study examining the differences in bacterial composition and microbial diversity of organically grown versus conventionally grown apples. The #gut #microbiome plays a vital role in helping control digestion as well as aiding the immune system. An imbalance of healthy and unhealthy microbes in the intestines may contribute to high blood sugar, high cholesterol, weight gain and other disorders. This study focuses on the #plant-gut microbiome axis and the importance of #raw eaten plants as a source for microbes.

Now there will be those tempted to see this as a pitch for drinking more red wine….but let’s try and keep this in perspective, you see a this research looked at a compound found in red wine, resveratrol.  It found that it reduces the risk of heart disease by changing the gut microbiome, according to a new study by researchers from China. The study is published in mBio, an open-access journal published by the American Society for Microbiology.[1]

The authors are recorded as stating:

“Our results offer new insights into the mechanisms responsible for resveratrol’s anti-atherosclerosis effects and indicate that gut microbiota may become an interesting target for pharmacological or dietary interventions to decrease the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases,”