Fun Flora
with
Does our
microbial
ecosystem
drive health
and disease?
By Debra L. Beck
E
vidence suggests that the gut microbiota plays a critical role in both the
maintenance of human health and the pathogenesis of many diseases.
Indeed, the supporting data are growing about as rapidly as bacteria do.
Which is fast, superfast. Could dysbiosis (microbial imbalance) be causal
of cardiometabolic disorders, including obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, and, if so, could the way to a healthy heart be through a
man’s (or woman’s) stomach—and digestive system? It’s so exciting that
renowned American biochemist Rob Knight (a professor at the University of California, San Diego and co-founder of the American Gut Project), told the journal Nature
that this field offers at least as much promise as stem cell research. It’s an enthralling
concept as investigators aim to unearth the mysteries of the human gut.