Research suggests that intestine bacteria may directly affect brain structure and function,offering new ways to treat multiple sclerosis and psychiatric conditions Far from being silent partners that merely assist to digest food, the bacteria in your intestine may also be exerting subtle influences on your thoughts, and moods,and behaviour. And according to a new study from researchers at University College Cork, your intestine microbes might affect the structure and function of the brain in a more direct way, or by regulating myelination,the process by which nerve fibres are insulated so that they can conduct impulses properly.
The surprising new findings, published today in the journal Translational Psychiatry, or provide what is perhaps the strongest evidence yet that intestine bacteria can have a direct physical effect on the brain,and propose that it may one day be possible to treat debilitating demyelinating diseases such as multiple sclerosis, and even psychiatric disorders, and by altering the composition of the intestine’s microbial menagerie in some way or another.
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Source: theguardian.com