Noteworthy
The human microbiome – the collection of microbes associated with our bodies – is variable, adapts to its host, but, most importantly, is increasingly recognized as important for our health and physiology. The sheer number and diversity of microbes, not to mention their interactions and activities, makes the study of the microbiome complex. How, then, can we understand what these microbes are doing?
Graphic abstract from paper.
Untangling specific contributions of microbes in the gut, with its abundance of species, is particularly tricky. Despite this, a multifactorial association study done in 2022 with thousands of individuals found a strong association between an anaerobic Gram-negative gut bacterium, Morganella morganii, and a major depressive disorder.
More recently, the specific role played by this bacterium was uncovered thanks to a collaboration between the labs of Jon Clardy, an expert in small molecule chemistry, and Ramnik Xavier who studies the gut microbiome. By using a bioassay-guided fractionation approach, the researchers found that an environmental micropollutant, diethanolamine, was incorporated into metabolites produced by the bacterium, forming chimeric cardiolipins that induced pro-inflammatory immune responses in the host. Chronic inflammation is critical because it has been implicated in the development of several diseases and is linked to depression.
Just as diverse microbes interact and co-exist in our bodies, so scientific collaboration propels discoveries, in this case regarding the nuances of complex human-microbe interactions and the effect of microbes on human hosts.
("Noteworthy" is the new format for STC's Thursday posts. Please read our Jan 20, 2025 post outlining this and other changes in our blog.)
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