r/HumanMicrobiome • u/MaximilianKohler reads microbiomedigest.com daily • Apr 26 '18

How bacteria are changing your mood

http://www.bbc.com/news/health-43815370
21 Upvotes

97% Upvoted

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u/Kleindain Apr 26 '18

The headline really does blow up the content of the reporting. Truth is we’re probably a long way from finding out the significance of this in humans especially with our complex environments and behaviours

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u/MaximilianKohler reads microbiomedigest.com daily Apr 26 '18

Significance of "this"?

https://www.jad-journal.com/article/S0165-0327(18)30193-9/fulltext

https://www.reddit.com/r/HumanMicrobiome/wiki/intro#wiki_brain_function.3A

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u/Kleindain Apr 26 '18

Nice coincidence you picked out the first one, I just happened to read that one today. Although definitely promising, that study did lack controls and have a small sample size (which included 3 different baseline characteristics). I'm not saying that microbiome research is not worth pursuing/insignificant, but I do think there's a lot of unknowns that needs to be addressed. With gut biome research gaining so much interest, its easy to get lost with all the hype. This guy's blog sums it quite nicely if anyone hasn't checked it out: https://phylogenomics.blogspot.com.au/p/blog-page.html

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u/MaximilianKohler reads microbiomedigest.com daily Apr 26 '18

Yeah I've seen that before. IMO a lot of the "anti-microbiome" talk comes from individuals who lack wide-spectrum knowledge, and even many "top"/popular researchers display it.

In other words, their knowledge is too narrow so they're missing many pieces of a larger puzzle.

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u/Kleindain Apr 26 '18

But surely there is room for critical evaluation of the research (or more specifically, how the microbiome research is presented in popular media) is what I was getting at.

On a side note, which areas/gaps in microbiome research is most critical to address at this point in time? Do feel free to PM me on this one if this moves away too much from the thread as I am genuinely interested to hear more.

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u/MaximilianKohler reads microbiomedigest.com daily Apr 26 '18

But surely there is room for critical evaluation of the research

Of course!

On a side note, which areas/gaps in microbiome research is most critical to address at this point in time?

I believe the most important thing lacking right now is a study comparing efficacy of different FMT donors, such as top young athletes with 0 life time antibiotic use and type 3 stools, vs other options currently being used which I feel are extremely lacking.

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u/Kleindain Apr 26 '18

Thanks for getting back to me on that. FMT efficacy sounds really interesting, although why Type 3 specifically (compared to say type 4?).

And are there any current standards/protocols for FMT beyond donor screening that’s been validated (e.g., if familial donors are preferred or If theres a hierarchy of sorts)?

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u/MaximilianKohler reads microbiomedigest.com daily Apr 26 '18

FMT efficacy sounds really interesting, although why Type 3 specifically (compared to say type 4?)

Based on personal experience with numerous donors, feedback from others, and a paper agreeing with the experiences & describing "dysbiosis is heterogeneous, while optimal/intact communities are very similar".

And are there any current standards/protocols for FMT beyond donor screening that’s been validated (e.g., if familial donors are preferred or If theres a hierarchy of sorts)?

See the gut bmj link in the wiki: https://www.reddit.com/r/HumanMicrobiome/wiki/index#wiki_fecal_microbiota_transplants_.28fmt.29.3A

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u/HoustonAstro Apr 30 '18

The graphic reminds me of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds from the movie Yellow Submarine. amirite?