Gut Bacteria Benefits Gastrointestinal Health: Study

A recent study takes an in-depth look at the benefits of bacteria for gastrointestinal health.

According to researchers from the Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Ga., they've discovered that specific gut bacteria can help people maintain a healthy intestinal tract by studying the fruit fly Drosphila and mice.

The researchers demonstrated this through promotion of host epithelial cells and the essential maintenance homeostasis in the intestinal system. With further studies, many believe that these could carry important implications for treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and allergic, metabolic and infectious disorders.

"It is well-known that mammals live in a homeostatic symbiosis with their gut micro-biota and that they influence a wide range of physiological processes. However, the molecular mechanisms of the symbiotic cross-talk in the gut are largely unrecognized," Andrew S. Neish, Professor at the Emory University School of Medicine, who led the research said, via a prses release. "In our study, we have discovered that Lactobacilli can stimulate reactive oxygen species that have regulatory effects on intestinal stem cells, including the activation of proliferation of these cells."

By using two different animal models, researchers demonstrated a highly conserved underlying mechanism of the symbiotic relationship is the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) via a class of conserved enzymes known as NADPH oxidases or Nox'es.

"Our data support the concept of commensal bacterial-induced generation of ROS as a transducer of bacterial signals into host cell signaling, thus establishing a mechanism for host/bacterial cross-talk," the researchers conclude, via the release.

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More information regarding the study can be found via the European Molecular Biology Organization.