The human intestinal microbiota is home to more than 1,000 bacterial species, containing approximately 3 million genes, many of which code for functions that have the potential to affect human physiology.1 Smaller numbers of organisms are also present in the skin, upper gastrointestinal tract, female reproductive tract and the oro- and nasopharynx. As tools have…
A voyage to (our inner) Lilliput
The microbiome comprises diverse microbial flora, including bacteria, viruses and fungi, that live on mucosal surfaces, predominantly the skin and digestive tract. Microbes evolved billions of years prior to the development of modern Homo sapiens 200,000 years ago; we have always existed with their ubiquitous presence. Despite this, the first microbe was not visualized until…
A growing body of research is elucidating the role of intestinal microbiota in several autoimmune diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Research published in December 2018 Arthritis & Rheumatology increases our understanding of the “extent and nature of mucosal immune activation during preclinical arthritis.”1 The research objective, according to the report, was to “dissect intestinal mucosal immune…