The gastrointestinal microbiome as a biological process encompasses the dynamic interactions, succession, and functional activities of microbial communities residing along the digestive tract and their continuous crosstalk with the host. It involves microbial colonization, competition, and cooperation; fermentation of dietary substrates; synthesis and biotransformation of metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids and bile acid derivatives; modulation of epithelial barrier integrity; and regulation of local and systemic immune responses. This process is characterized by context-dependent compositional shifts (e.g., in response to diet, xenobiotics, and inflammation) that influence host metabolism, signaling pathways, and susceptibility to gastrointestinal and extraintestinal diseases.
The gut microbiome is teeming with hundreds of bacterial species and trillions of bacteria. These microorganisms influence many aspects of health, including digestion, and assist with numerous functions in the body. Gut bacteria ...
Cell & Microbiology
11 hours ago
0
41
As waves of humans left Africa tens of thousands of years ago, eventually populating the entire planet, they were joined on their world-conquering ride by the trillions of microorganisms that compose the gut microbiome.
Evolution
Oct 7, 2026
0
926
Why do the gut microbiomes of people from industrialized and nonindustrialized regions differ? A study by the Helmholtz Center for Infection Research (HZI) in collaboration with the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), ...
Ecology
Oct 6, 2026
0
149
An estimated 38 trillion bacteria live in the human body—and only a small fraction are harmful to our health. However, the harmful ones can cause serious illness, especially when they develop resistance to antibiotics.
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 25, 2026
0
36
For many years, antibiotics have been added to animal feed to help control harmful bacteria and improve growth. But amid concerns about antibiotic resistance—when bacteria adapt to survive treatments that would normally kill ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 25, 2026
0
24
Gut microbiota influence multiple aspects of host physiology, including metabolic and immune functions. Many metabolites produced by gut bacteria can cross the intestinal epithelium (which the bacteria may not be able to ...
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 24, 2026
0
13
The mammalian gut microbiome teems with a delicate balance of bacteria and the viruses that keep them in check, called bacteriophages, or phages. Each bacterial species usually has its own set of phage partners.
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 16, 2026
0
92
Weill Cornell Medicine investigators have developed a set of molecular tools to regulate the activity of specific genes in one of the most common classes of intestinal bacteria. The ability to genetically manipulate these ...
Cell & Microbiology
Aug 25, 2026
0
15
Understanding how bacteria influence one another is essential for understanding how microbial communities are formed and maintained. Researchers at Umeå University have now systematically mapped interactions between common ...
Ecology
Aug 24, 2026
0
176
Scientists analyzed the genomes of gut microorganisms from an extensive population of 875 wild house mice (Mus musculus) collected from farms in Germany. They searched for genes responsible for resistance to common antibiotics ...
Ecology
Aug 20, 2026
0
26
