Behind the Paper
The real stories behind the latest research papers, from conception to publication, the highs and the lows
Microbial Modulation of Host Locomotion
Locomotion is important to many complex behaviors such as foraging, mating and evading predators, and is closely related to metabolism. The gut microbiome is known to modulate various aspects of host physiology, including behavior and metabolism. Studies in mice have previously implicated microbial involvement in locomotion; however, potential pathways linking bacteria to motor behaviors have been relatively unclear. Due to the similarities in locomotion between arthropods and mammals, we set out to examine if the microbiota modulates locomotion in flies and determine the underlying mechanisms for this regulation.
Human gut microbiota of young healthy adults is resilient to a multiantibiotics treatment
The human gut microbiota of healthy young adults gradually recovers after a combination of last-resort antibiotics intervention. However, the gut microbiota exhibits a mild yet long-lasting foot print after the treatment. After the antibiotic exposure the survival and colonization odds for each microbe depend on its resistance gene and virulence factors repertoire.
