The study, published in the journal Cell Metabolism, focused on Escherichia coli (E.coli) which normally live harmlessly in the guts of mammals and birds. Maybe it is our gut microbiome. Because when you eat, you’re feeding them too-and triggering an enormous bloom of gut bacteria.
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Researchers believe that these findings can give a better understanding of how the human body works given the influences of gut bacteria that signals our brains.
According to study researchers, nearly after 20 minutes of continuous eating, E. coli bacteria, which are commonly found in human gut, starts producing proteins that scientists say are connected to a hormone responsible to suppress hunger.
Therefore, it’s only logical to conclude that the healthier your gut microbiome is, the better signals it will send to your appetite control center.
The role played by gut bacteria in maintaining our health has been highlighted in many recent research projects. A single human body hosts more microbes than there are people on Earth – many, many times over.
Researchers including Fetissov observed in lab studies that after 20 minutes of consuming nutrients and expanding numbers, E. coli bacteria from the gut produce different kinds of proteins than they did before their feeding. Additionally, this 20-minute timeframe coincided with the amount of time it takes for a person to feel full or exhausted after they have eaten.
The early findings prompted researchers to profile the bacterial proteins before and after feeding.
During the experiments, small doses of the proteins were injected into both free-fed and full mice and rats that reduced their food intake. It’s these proteins that seemed to stimulate the release of satiety hormones from the gut, the report said.
Levels of CLpB in mice and rats 20 minutes after eating remained unchanged in the blood, but the levels did correlate with ClpB DNA production in the gut, suggesting a mechanism linking gut bacterial composition with the host control of appetite. This suggests these bacteria have an influence on the release of gut-brain signals and the activation of appetite-regulated neurons in the brains of humans, Medical Xpress reported. Past research has shown that disrupted gut bacteria can cause an overproduction of Firmicutes, a class of bacteria known for breaking down fiber and absorbing dietary fat.
The next step was to see what – if any – effect the release of more ClpB in E. coli’s postmeal protein cocktail might have on the host body.
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Lead researcher Dr Serguei Fetissov, from Rouen University in France, said: “We now think bacteria physiologically participate in appetite regulation immediately after nutrient provision by multiplying and stimulating the release of satiety hormones from the gut”. Hence, these bacteria produce proteins that are present in the blood in the long term and adjust pathways in the brain.
