Bacteroides fragilis is a gut bacterium present in approximately 30% to 50% of the healthy human population

Overview Debates Related claims Topics

Consuming three servings of fermented foods daily supports immune system regulation through the gut microbiome

Specific gut bacteria ferment dietary fiber into short-chain fatty acids, including butyrate

Consuming a diversity of at least 30 different plants per week supplies dietary fiber to support gut microbiome health

Restricting the intake of ultra-processed foods prevents adverse disruptions to the gut microbiome and immune function

The short-chain fatty acid butyrate enhances the function of regulatory T cells that suppress autoimmune responses against healthy body tissues

The majority of human immune cells reside within or line the walls of the gastrointestinal tract

Research following a mouse metabolomic screen confirmed that 4-ethylphenyl sulfate is elevated in the feces and serum of autistic humans

Transplanting fecal microbiota from autistic individuals into germ-free mice transferred behavioral deficits to the recipient animals

Paul Patterson's maternal immune activation mouse model demonstrated that influenza infection during pregnancy resulted in behavioral abnormalities, intestinal permeability, and microbiome alterations in offspring

The gut-first hypothesis of Parkinson's disease proposes that alpha-synuclein aggregation initiates in enteric neurons and migrates to the brain via connecting nerve bundles

Germ-free mice raised in sterile isolators allow the transplantation of complete human microbiomes without competition from native mouse microbes

Elevated levels of fecal calprotectin and eosinophil protein X serve as clinical biomarkers of intestinal inflammation

Gut microbes consume and metabolize dietary polyphenols found in foods and beverages such as green tea and coffee

The adult human gut microbiome has a metabolic capacity comparable to the liver and a physical mass comparable to the adult brain

Clostridioides difficile is an antibiotic-resistant bacterial bloom that causes severe intestinal tissue damage

Intestinal dysbiosis and increased gut permeability can occur in patients without overt digestive symptoms

A metabolomic screen of mice displaying autism-like behavioral deviations identified a 40-fold elevation in the small phenolic molecule 4-ethylphenyl sulfate

Healthy human gut microbiomes contain between 200 and 500 different bacterial species

Fecal microbiota transplants achieve a greater than 90% clinical cure rate for recurrent Clostridioides difficile infections

Human gut bacteria reside predominantly in the colon and in the small intestine