What happens to your microbiome through life?
We now understand that we have a community of microorganisms in our gut, which play important roles throughout the body. But how do they get there? Are we born with …
Course: The Human Microbiome
Take home message
We hope you’ve enjoyed your journey and expanded your knowledge. Each step has been full of some wonderful contributions which have made the course even more enjoyable. The last 3 …
The Gut-Brain Axis: A Case Study
Gut Vibes! What is the “gut-brain axis”? What is meant by “gut feelings”? Gut and brain interaction, what comes first? The connection between the “gut” and the “brain” through the …
How does an unhealthy diet impact a person’s microbiota?
What is the impact of junk and healthy food in the human microbiota? Obesity is the best example that illustrates how the adherence to an unhealthy diet can be translated …
What to expect from week 2
During week 2 Journey of Food you will learn how foods are digested and how they interact and modulate our gut microbiome. You will understand more about fermented foods and …
How Microbiota Communicates With Our Immune System
Did you know that one of the central roles of the gut microbiota is the regulation of the immune system? How does the immune system “sense” the gut bacteria? Even …
What is dysbiosis and leaky gut?
The intestinal mucosa is a heterogeneous entity composed mainly of tightly packed single layers of epithelial cells covering the external surfaces of our intestinal mucosa, and interacting with the surrounding …
Microbiota vs Microbiome
Often the terms microbiota and microbiome are used in an interchangeable way, however they have a complete different meaning. Recently, as an outcome of the MicrobiomeSupport project a group of …
Mycobiome
Did you know that friendly moulds reside in our gut? Did you know that you ingest these microbes daily with food? Think a little about blue cheese for example. Moulds …
Is there an alternative to antibiotics?
Should all viruses be considered villains? Scientists have discovered that viruses heavily influence the microbiome and, if harnessed correctly, could offer a potential alternative to antibiotics. The human gastrointestinal tract is …
Microbiota
The gastrointestinal tract contains a diverse microbial community that is predominantly bacterial and is referred to as the gut microbiota. Bacteria are the most studied and scientists have discovered over …
Can we make wheat healthier for people to eat?
Scientists have used crop genetics approaches to enhance resistant starch in staple food crops such as wheat. Why is wheat one of our most important crops? Wheat is one of …
Resistant Starch and the role of the microbiota
How is resistant starch broken down? Most starches are easily digested in our small intestine but resistant starch resists digestion and reaches the colon intact. It is therefore a component …
Cooking, processing and the microbiota, their importance in digestion
How are nutrients released during digestion? Does cooking and processing affect the nutrients available to us and what food constituents reach the colon and our microbiota? These questions will be …
Composition of Gut Microbiome
This step discusses the various components of the gut microbiome. Composition of Gut Microbiome You probably know that billions of micro-organisms live in our bodies, mostly located in the gastrointestinal …