The immune system has to recognise invaders without attacking the helpful microbes. That is not an easy job.
Our bodies are full of microbial life. Bacteria live on our skin, in our nose and gut. Many of these commensal bacteria are not enemies. They help defend body sites against incoming pathogens and form part of our first line of protection.
Skin and nasal microbiomes can act as barriers against pathogens and interact with immune responses. Gut bacteria can help protect against pathogenic gut bacteria and support immune function.
At the same time, harmful bacteria can enter the body and try to make themselves at home. The immune system must recognise these invaders, respond quickly while avoiding damaging helpful microbes.
But pathogens have tricks too. Some bacteria wear capsules: sugar-coated layers that can act like micro-invisibility cloaks. These capsules can help them avoid detection by the immune system, making it harder for immune cells to recognise and attack them.
So immunity is not just a battle between body and bacteria. It is a negotiation between immune cells, helpful microbes, harmful invaders and bacterial survival strategies. The immune system does not fight alone. It works in a microbial landscape, where the bacteria already living with us can help keep unwanted visitors away.
Everything we eat comes into contact with the bacteria living in our gastrointestinal tract. Our commensal gut bacteria transform the incoming food into different molecules, with short-chain fatty acids being the most important ones. These small molecules interact with your gut as well as the rest of your body. Certain factors, like diet influence which molecules and how much of them gut microbes produce.
Your immune system is constantly patrolling your body, ensuring that it stays clean and free of disease. Every single day, every hour, every minute, pathogens are pouring in, attempting to call your body their home and cause disease. But your immune system has specialised drones who bring the fight directly to the intruders. These drones are the so-called complement system. They keep bacterial pathogens at bay to ensure that we stay healthy.
Bacteria in your gut microbiome help you digest your food, strengthen your immune system and keep you healthy. For this, your gut bacteria keep you free from gut pathogenic bacteria by fighting them with different weapons. Here, we explore some ways gut bacteria defend pathogens and how you can help them protect you.
Microbes and bacteria affect our lives in every possible way. This is why we should all learn more about these fascinating organisms and how to make the best of their impact. Here, I share with you my favourite books about microbes in which you learn how our amazing microbial friends influence your health, body and the environment and even shaped human history.
How often have you looked at your dirty hands and thought: “Better wash them to get rid of those bacteria!”. Actually, don’t rush to the nearest bathroom to wash them off. It turns out that every person always has bacteria on their hands. And these bacteria are part of everyone’s unique skin microbiome.
When bacteria enter the human body, they are welcomed by our immune system that is ready to fight them off. However, some bacteria can put on invisibility cloaks that help them hide from the immune system. Thanks to this sugar coat – the so-called bacterial capsule – bacteria can sneak into our bodies, infect us and make us sick.
Yogurt is a well-loved fermented dairy with lots of health benefits. It not only provides us with valuable proteins and immune-stimulating molecules, but can also carry probiotic organisms. Here, we will look at the advantages of adding yogurt to your diet plan and what bacteria have to do with producing this creamy white dream.
Bacteria swim through liquids with their flagella. Some bacteria even have two flagella at opposite ends that help them to swim through mucus and slime. This movement helps bacteria to infect the human body. Now, researchers start to better understand how these flagella work together to move the bacterium forward.
To fight nasty microorganisms, researchers need to come up with new strategies to develop vaccines. Turns out bacteria are extremely helpful to researchers, since they provide valuable tools.
Learn how researchers use bacteria to find new vaccines.
To overcome the medical problem of how drugs can reach a specific target within the body, researchers try to use new approaches. These are often based on bacteria or their products. Here, we will explore drug transport mechanisms for which we could use bacteria and their amazing superpowers.
The microbial world is super colorful and diverse.
Even though, we sometimes hear too many negative news articles about certain players of the microbial world, we should not forget about all the other interesting and helpful microbes.
To remind you that the microbial world consists of so many more players, we assembled this list of common and interesting microbes.
Microbes and bacteria touch every aspect of our lives. They have so many superpowers that impact the environment, food production, bioremediation and even the climate. Here, we will look at 20 of the most fascinating bacterial superpowers and tell you where you might encounter them throughout your day. But don’t forget, there are plenty more.
The differences between bacteria and viruses are based on their structure, size and reproduction. While bacteria are generally considered living organisms, viruses are not.
Your gut microbiome is full of helpful and fascinating bacteria. They all work together to keep you healthy, digest your food and fight off intruders. Here, you will learn about what a healthy gut microbiome is, what it does and how to keep it.
Bacteria in your mouth protect your teeth from pathogenic bacteria. When you eat lots of sugars, the pathogens can fight off your friendly bacteria. The more pathogenic bacteria grow on your teeth, the more acids they produce that can cause caries and cavities. Learn about the bacterial battles in your mouths.
Pathogenic bacteria developed different mechanisms to attach to human host cells. However, our immune system learned to fight back, so that a constant battle between bacteria and host is happening in our bodies.