Fecal transplants seem like an unlikely way to reverse the aging process.
Scientists at the University of East Anglia and the Quadram Institute have shown that faecal microbiota from young to old mice can reverse signs of aging in the gut, eyes, and brain.
In the reverse experiment, the brain of young recipients was inflammationd by aged mice and 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884
Gut microbes play a role in regulating some of the effects of aging and can be used to combat decline in later life.
Prof Simon Carding, head of the Gut Microbes and Health Research Programme at the Quadram Institute, said: "This ground-breaking study provides tantalising evidence for the direct involvement of gut microbes in ageing and the functional decline."
It has been known for a long time that the population of microbes in our gut are linked to health. Most diseases are associated with changes in the types and behavior of the microbes in the gut.
As we age, some of the changes in microbiota composition can adversely affect metabolism and immunity, and this has been associated with age-related disorders.
Scientists from the Quadram Institute transferred the gut microbes from old mice to young mice in order to better understand the effects of old age on the microbiota. They looked at how this affected the inflammatory hallmarks of aging in the gut, brain and eye.
The study found that the loss of integrity of the lining of the gut caused by old donors resulted in the creation of new strains ofbacteria which caused inflammation in the brain and eyes.
The activation of immune cells found in the brain has been associated with age-related chronic inflammation. Young mice who received aged microbiome transplants were over-activated by these cells.
In the eye, the team found that the young mice receiving microbiota from old donors had elevated levels of certain genes.
The gut, eye, and brain of old mice could be reversed by transferring the gut microbiota from young mice.
The team is working to understand how long these positive effects can last and to identify the beneficial components of the young donor microbiota.
Young mice and old mice who received transplants of the young microbiota were enriched in beneficialbacteria that have been associated with good health in both humans and mice.
The researchers analysed the products which thesebacteria produce by breaking down elements of our diet. The changes seen in inflammatory cells in the eye and brain may be related to the changes in fat and vitamins.
Similar pathways exist in humans, and the human gut microbiota also changes in later life, but the researchers caution about extrapolating their results directly to humans until similar studies in elderly humans can be performed.
A new facility for Microbiota Replacement Therapy (MRT), also known as Faecal Microbiota Transplantation (FMBT), is being built in the Quadram Institute that will facilitate such trials, as well as other trials for microbiota-related conditions.
The lead author of the study said that they were excited to find that changing the gut microbiota of elderly individuals could help save indicators of age-associated decline.
Our results show that there are important links between the gut and healthy aging of tissues and organs. We hope that our findings will help us understand how we can manipulate our diet and gut flora to improve our health in later life.
The research was funded by the council.
The fecal microbiota transfer between young and aged mice reverses hallmarks of the aging gut, eye, and brain.
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