The Aging Gut Microbiome in the Context of Alzheimer ' s Disease

The gut microbiome changes with age. The complex balance of microbial species shifts in an unfavorable direction, and with it comes ever greater chronic inflammation alongside a loss of beneficial metabolite production. It remains an open question as to how much of the inflammation of aging, disruptive of tissue function and health, is caused by the gut microbiome. Identifying mechanisms is one thing, figuring out their relative importance quite another. The only practical way to achieve that goal is to change just the one mechanism in isolation of all the others, and observe the results. In the case of the aging gut microbiome, there are a few comparatively simple approaches demonstrated to reverse age-related changes for a protracted period of time. The most proven is fecal microbiota transplantation from a young individual to an old individual. In short-lived species, this resets the microbiome, improves health, and extends life. It is not an approved human therapy in the US, but is nonetheless often used for treatment of conditions in which pathological bacteria overtake the intestines, both by physicians, and by patients taking matters into their own hands. Setting aside the question of how to screen for microbes that might cause issues to an older individual, it is a simple procedure. At some point the clinical community will get around to running formal trials of fecal microbiota transplantation as a means to improve health in later life, but since intell...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Medicine, Biotech, Research Source Type: blogs