Gut bacteria may alter ageing process: Study

Microorganisms living in the gut may alter the ageing process, which could lead to the development of food-based treatment to slow it down, according to a study.

All living organisms, including humans, coexist with a myriad of microbial species living in and on them.

Research conducted over the last 20 years has established the important role gut microbes play in nutrition, physiology, metabolism and behaviour, according to a team led by Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore.

Using mice, the team led by Professor Sven Pettersson from the NTU, transplanted gut microbes from old mice (24 months old) into young, germ-free mice (six weeks old).

After eight weeks, the young mice had increased intestinal growth and production of neurons in the brain, known as neurogenesis.

The study, published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, showed that the increased neurogenesis was due to an enrichment of gut microbes that produce a specific short chain fatty acid, called ...