isbscience.org/research/microbiome/
Our knowledge of the human microbiome has grown exponentially over the past decade. The ecological diversity of human gut bacteria is declining around the world due to changes in hygiene and lifestyle. This loss of diversity has been associated with the rise of asthma, allergies, obesity, and a host of other disorders. Meanwhile, commercial excitement surrounding the human microbiome has outpaced research, resulting in unsubstantiated claims. We aim to bridge this gap by connecting cutting-edge science to health care.
“The trillions of microorganisms that reside in and on our bodies — our microbiome — represent a heretofore unrecognized organ, integral to our health and wellbeing. When the ecology of this organ is compromised, we become vulnerable to a range of complex diseases.”
– Dr. Sean Gibbons, Associate Professor, ISB
RESEARCH
ISB researchers have shown which blood metabolites are associated with the gut microbiome, genetics, or the interplay between both. Their findings, published in the journal Nature Metabolism, have promising implications for guiding targeted therapies designed to alter the composition of the blood metabolome to improve human health.
RESEARCH
ISB research shows that different patient responses to statins can be explained by the variation in the human microbiome. The findings were published in the journal Med, and suggest that microbiome monitoring could be used to help optimize personalized statin treatments.
RESEARCH
The strongest associations with weight loss success or failure – independent of BMI – are found in the genetic capacity of the gut microbiome. These new findings open the door to diagnostic tests that can identify people likely to lose weight with healthy lifestyle changes and those who might need more drastic interventions.
RESEARCH
The gut microbiome is an integral component of the body, but its importance in the human aging process is unclear. ISB researchers and their collaborators have identified distinct signatures in the gut microbiome that are associated with either healthy or unhealthy aging trajectories, which in turn predict survival in a population of older individuals.
ISB’s multi-pronged and collaborative approach to the human microbiome is unique. We have made great strides in developing computational tools and experimental models targeted at engineering the gut microbiome. However, our work is far from done. Your support is crucial to our quest to integrate the human microbiome into 21st Century medicine.
ISB has been selected as a winner of the 2024 Amazon Web Services (AWS) IMAGINE Grant. The grant will support ISB’s continued development of My Digital Gut, an online decision-support platform that will help make microbiome-informed nutrition and healthcare personalized, predictive, and preventive.
ISB Assistant Professor Dr. Sid Venkatesh is the co-first author of a paper in the journal Science. While at Washington University in St. Louis, Venkatesh and colleagues identified a novel gut microbial enzyme that impacts satiety-related signaling pathways in undernourished children treated with microbiota-directed complementary foods.
There has been an explosion of research into the two-way communication between the gut microbiota and the brain, which has helped us to understand complex behavioral and neurophysiological phenotypes in many animal species. This year, ISB hosted a virtual microbiome series dedicated to exploring the gut-brain axis.
