Month: December 2021

I would be very excited to fund research that uses 16S rRNA sequencing and metagenomic technology to catalog and compare the microbiomes of people across cultures. My background is in anthropology including medical anthropology.  I think a lot of information could be found out about the role microbiomes play in our health and disease by looking at differences and similarities between them  cross-culturally.    By looking at contrasts of microbiomes between cultures, it may allow some correlations between microbiomes and disease to stand out. Similar causal relationships may be seen with healthy people and particular bacterial strains or species. 

The funding would include using different specialties necessary to have a comprehensive analysis of population microbiomes, including specialties such as the analysis of gene expression (metatranscriptomics), protein products (metaproteomics) and metabolic profiles (metabolomics). 

We may find in some geographical locations and cultures a prevalence of healthy bacteria from species or strains that are different from ours.  This would give us a more comprehensive perspective on which bacteria are considered the “healthy” and most common bacteria.  If the presence of specific bacteria are prevalent across cultures, this would be vital to know, and it would further solidify the importance of preserving healthy bacteria and microbiomes in our bodies.  It would show how vital those particular types of bacteria are for our health and well being. 

Also, differences found between cultures and geographical locations would indicate how dynamic the microbiome is, and how it is able to be influenced by the environment. It would also point out how our microbiomes are in a delicate balance with the environment, no different than ecosystems we find in nature.

It would also give us information about the correlation between disease and certain known bacteria found in a particular microbiome.  For example, if one particular culture has a high rate of a particular disease, and it is found that there is also a higher rate of a particular species or strain of a bacteria not found in other cultures, then a hypothesis can be made of a causal relationship between the two.  This approach could also be used when looking at the prevalence of particular healthy bacteria in a population and the absence of a particular disease that is found in other populations without that particular bacteria. 

• Gastrointestinal disease
• Ulcers
• Cancers from oncogenes
• Diabetes
• Obesity
• Crohn’s disease
• Autoimmune disease
• Asthma 
• Possibly anxiety and other psychiatric disorders
• Heart disease indirect from oral pathogenic bacteria
• Yeast infection

My responses in week one were based on knowledge I’ve just picked up over the years and did not include diseases related to microbiomes per se.  My responses in week 10 are based on research articles we have read about in this class, and I have a much more in depth understanding of noninfectious diseases and their relation to microbiomes.  

One of the most interesting topics I’ve learned in this course is the concept of how we each have our own microbiome ecosystem that is unique to our own body.  We are walking ecosystems that we need to take care of and value. Each person on this planet is in a symbiotic relationship with the ecosystem on this earth because we obtain the bacteria in our bodies from the environment around us.  We carry around our own little piece of the earth.

I also appreciated learning about the connections between microflora and their possible influence on our appetite hormones.  The food we eat and the way we take care of ourselves influences our microfloral environment and this could directly affect our appetite and our ability to maintain a healthy weight.  When I have a big appetite, I can blame it on my microbiome rather than rationalize that my body needs food when it doesn’t.

It was also fascinating to learn how the work done on H. pylori evolved, and how it was determined that ulcers can be cured by antibiotics because of the research.  Even more amazing,  the researchers went from being rejected in the community to winning the Nobel Prize for it twenty years later. That really illustrates the hypocrisy and naive thinking that can be found in the field of science, and it is so reassuring to learn that the researchers were intelligent and persistent enough to not give up, and to have the scientific community have the courage to be open to progression in science and finally award them with the Nobel Prize.

I am also amazed by the advanced technology of 16S rRNA sequencing, and it has completely changed the field of scientific and medical research.  Causal relationships between microbiomes and the human body have been for the most part conjecture and anecdotal conclusions before the use of this technology.  Now we have the ability to determine exactly what microflora exists in a particular environment and make much more informed hypotheses and conclusions, especially when studying diseases.  

This technology is really a game changer in the field of medical and scientific research.

I am very interested in research being done regarding the influence of our microflora on hormone production.  This can also extend to the influence of microflora on our mental states.  I think a lot more research will be done in this area and we will find our some amazing correlations between microflora and our mental health states.