Gut microbes may offer clues to a potentially devastating and confounding disorder named autism. Whereas the causes of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are unclear, genetic anomalies, nutritional deficiencies, toxins and infections are suspected. Now scientists are looking more closely at gut microbes and complex interactions along the gut-brain axis. Quick review: Autism is a developmental […]
dysbiosis
Iron Supplements Can Mess with Microbes
Iron is the go-to treatment for anemia. Troubling though is the dysbiosis it can cause. Iron favors strains of pathogenic species over more healthful ones. In the genital tract, for instance, Gardnerella vaginalis, Trichomonas vaginalis and Candida albicans require iron for adhesion. Most lactobacilli, which maintain a healthy vaginal ecosystem, do not. And in another example […]
Are Diseases Marked by Different Microbiota?
More health and less disease—that’s the goal for all this money and manpower spent on microbiome research. And yes, scientists have identified clear links between dysbiosis and multiple diseases. But the landscape gets more complicated —though no less promising– when dysbiosis is put under the microscope. In Meta-analysis of gut microbiome studies identifies disease-specific and shared […]
A Look at Dysbiosis in Lung Cancer
When healthy, lungs make breathing look easy. Behind the scenes, the vital exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide runs along 1500 miles of alveoli, a microscopic metro that runs on perfect time. But lungs can be derailed by many diseases and disorders: pneumonia, bronchitis, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), emphysema, cancer as well as […]