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Researchers near replicating carbon reduction process in nature

May

2

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Researchers found that enzymes from certain bacteria in the soil turns carbon dioxide in the air into carbon molecules, a process that helps reduce the carbon footprint which drives climate change.

An international consortium of university researchers including Stanford’s Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have figured out a way to potentially artificially duplicate the process in lab, according to an April 29 2022 report by Glennda Chui of the Stanford National Accelerator Lab.

The process known as carbon fixing, is the key component in photosynthesis. But instead of a 20 times slower process in plants, the soil bacteria, Kitasatospora setae, relies on enzymes called Rubisco. Researchers also found it can also produce antibiotics, according to Chui’s article quoting Soichi Wakatsuki, a professor at SLAC and Stanford.

The next step will be to build on an enhanced version of the artificial process.

https://www6.slac.stanford.edu/news/2022-04-29-how-soil-microbe-could-rev-artificial-photosynthesis.aspx

Cayenne pepper helps to diversify microbiome community

Apr

27

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On April 19 2022 Mind Body Green reported a study that found "that capsaicin (in cayenne pepper) alters the gut microbial community structure by increasing the diversity of the community." Capsaicin is an antioxidant said to aid in proper digestion, with anti-inflammatory effects. Researchers used the in vitro model to conduct their research.

Capsaicin stimulates the nerves in your stomach and us said to help to increase the production of digestive fluid. According to WebMD, it sends enzymes to the stomach to aid in digestion, and protectshe the stomach from infections.

https://amp.mindbodygreen.com/articles/capsaicin-gut-health-study

anti-inflammatory effects of certain viruses

Apr

18

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Dr. Kate. L. Jeffrey, associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, isolated viruses from a patient’s colon surgical tissue, and found that viruses in a normal intestine had anti-inflammatory effects and contributed to a healthy gut.

Dr. Jeffrey isolated some viruses in the gut of their patients and found that these viruses in a "normal intestine had anti-inflammatory effects and contributed to a healthy gut." Other viruses had the opposite effect, thus calling for a viral balance.

Other researchers studied mice that were given viruses from healthy human colons and found they were protected from intestinal inflammation. Conversely, mice whose intestinal viruses were replaced with viruses associated with IBD exhibited exacerbated inflammation.

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-04-gut-viruses-intestinal-health-contribute.amp

Urolithin A said to reduce aging

Mar

30

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According to Popular Science, researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL) and life-science company Amazentis believe they have found a way to reduce muscle decline and low energy with a highly pure Urolithin A supplement. Gut bacteria generate urolithin A from pomegranates, berries, and nuts.

Mitochondria which converts food into energy, generates adenosine triphosphate (ATP) life-sustaining chemical tissue, and mitophagy which is the process of breaking down old worn out mitochondria. The March 22 2022 Popular Science report says researchers found that Urolithin A boosts mitophagy. It is produced as a by-product when gut bacteria digest specific ingredients such as pomegranates (1).

David Marcinek, Ph.D., a professor of radiology at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattlein Medicine News Today, believes that Urolithin A supplements may provide a way to stimulate mitophagy in older people and help them maintain strength and endurance. He and his team are doing preliminary clinical trial to find out the efficacy and safety of such supplements (2).

https://www.popsci.com/sponsored-post/scientists-in-switzerland-discover-that-gut-microbiome-postbiotic-urolithin-a-may-help-combat-muscle-fatigue-with-aging/

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/gut-microbiome-may-hold-key-to-combat-muscle-decline-in-aging

Gut microbiome linked to cognitive aging

Mar

3

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According to a February 22, 2022 Medical News Today report, researchers from the United States analyzed data from a large cross-sectional study of CARDIA, Coronary Artery Risk Development, in Young Adults and found a link between gut microbial composition and cognitive status in middle-aged adults.

607 stool samples were studied for DNA sequencing of adults across the country with a mean age of 55. The genera Barnesiella, Lachnospiraceae, and Akkermansia were positively associated with at least one of the cognitive tests, while Sutterella was negatively associated with one test.

Scientists believe that short-chain fatty acids play a part in regulating how the gut and brain interact. Short-chain fatty acids have been associated with protection against vascular dementia and cognitive impairment, according to the Medical News Today article.

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/microorganisms-in-the-gut-are-linked-to-cognitive-function

Related news: https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/bacteria-infecting-viruses-in-gut-microbiome-linked-to-cognition-69709

gut bacteria reduces productivity as we age

Feb

20

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According to a January 25, 2022 Medical News Today report, gut bacteria which produce a metabolite called urolithin A improves the overall efficiency of mitochondria, which prevent fatigue and helps maintain strength and endurance.

Part of the issue is that as we age, our cells progressively lose their capacity for “mitophagy”, which is the breakdown and recycling of faulty mitochondria, says David Marcinek, Ph.D., a professor of radiology at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle. Professor Marcinek and his team are currently exploring clinical trials of Urolithin A supplements to determine efficacy for the aging.

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/gut-microbiome-may-hold-key-to-combat-muscle-decline-in-aging

Gut bacterial chemical promotes obesity

Feb

10

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Delta-valerobetaine, a bacterial metabolite is said to provide a starting point to understand our gut microbiome as a link between diet and body composition, according to Dean Jones, professor of medicine at Emory University School of Medicine and co-senior author of the paper in a January 31, 2022 Futurity.org article. Delta-valerobetaine was identified by comparing the livers of conventionally housed mice with those in germ-free mice.

Researchers found that the delta-valerobetaine decreases the liver’s ability to burn fat during fasting periods. The molecule was first identified by Ken Liu, a former molecular and systems pharmacology graduate student who is the first author of the paper.

Certain varieties of bacteria are believed to produce more delta-valerobetaine than others. The Futurity.org article says the Cleveland Clinic confirmed that TMAO (trimethylamine N-oxide) of which Delta-valerobetaine is a precursor, is associated with cardiovascular disease.

https://www.futurity.org/metabolite-intestinal-bacteria-obesity-2689822/

guts of carnivorous female versus male minks vary widely

Jan

30

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A January 11 2022 article in Phys.org says dramatic differences in the gut microbiome of female and male American minks.

According to Erin McKenney, co-author of the study and an assistant professor of applied ecology at North Carolina State University, the guts of carnivores are much more short and simple than the guts of omnivores and herbivores, yet gender differences are still significant. Researchers say this will help understanding and develop future study design of animal gut microbiome.

http://phys.org/news/2022-01-distinct-gut-microbiomes-male-female.html

Enhaler for COPD patients makes them more susceptible to Pneumonia

Jan

20

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Fluticasone-based inhaled corticosteroid treatment substantially changed airway microbiome diversity in patients with COPD, according to new data published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

“Inhaled corticosteroids . . . can change the microbial communities of airways of COPD patients, rendering them more susceptible for pneumonia,” Don D. Sin, MD, director and De Lazzari Family Chair at the Centre for Heart Lung Innovation, Canada Research Chair in COPD and professor of respiratory medicine, department of medicine at St. Paul’s Hospital, Vancouver, British Columbia, is quoted saying in Healio.

The study results according to the Healio report related to “reduced abundances of Pasteurellas, Pasteurellaceae and Haemophilus.” It also suggests that further studies are needed to determine “which bacterial organisms are responsible for keeping the microbiome airway healthy”.

https://www.healio.com/news/pulmonology/20220103/fluticasonebased-ics-laba-therapy-changes-airway-microbiome-in-copd

https://www.healio.com/news/pulmonology/20211129/ics-dose-may-be-risk-factor-for-p-aeruginosa-infection-in-severe-copd

Scientists at Ferring develop biomarker to measure gut bacteria impacted by antibiotic treatments

Jan

8

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According to a December 07 2022 article, Ferring Company developed a first-of-its-kind prototype biomarker algorithm that measures the positive and negative impact on our gut microbiome of using antibiotics.

The Ferring MHI-A algorithm differentiates post-antibiotic dysbiosis from healthy microbiota in the gut associated with healthy Bacteroidia and Clostridia, versus potentially harmful species such as Gammaproteobacteria and Bacilli.

Researchers at Ferring say MHI-A is a useful for rank-ordering the microbiota-disrupting effects of antibiotics and a measure of microbiota restoration. Ken Blount, Chief Scientific Officer, Rebiotix, Vice President Microbiome Research, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, is quoted by Business Wire as saying, “This biomarker provides a concise metric for assessing the complex changes in the microbiome of trial participants pre- to post-treatment.”

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2021.781275

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220107005052/en/Frontiers-in-Microbiology-Publishes-Article-Detailing-Novel-Microbiome-based-Biomarker-of-Post-Antibiotic-Disruptions-in-Gut-Microbiota