Tuyển tập các báo cáo nghiên cứu về y học được đăng trên tạp chí y học Minireview cung cấp cho các bạn kiến thức về ngành y đề tài: Cross-talk in the gut. | Minireview Cross-talk in the gut Jennifer E Dinalo and David A Relman Addresses Department of Microbiology and Immunology Stanford University School of Medicine Fairchild Science Building 299 Campus Drive Stanford CA 94305-5124 USA. Department of Medicine Stanford University School of Medicine Stanford CA 94305-5107 USA. Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System 3801 Miranda Avenue Palo Alto CA 94304-1207 USA. Correspondence David A Relman. Email relman@ Published 23 January 2009 Genome Biology 2009 10 203 doi gb-2009-10-1-203 The electronic version of this article is the complete one and can be found online at http 2009 10 1 203 2009 BioMed Central Ltd Abstract Modulation of host signaling by the products of microbial activity in the gut may affect weight gain and fat formation. The relationship between humans and the population of indigenous microorganisms in their intestines the gut microbiota is ancient and important. In a recent survey exploring the relationship between mammals and their microbiota it was found that individuals of the same species were more likely to have a similar gut microbiota than mammals of different species 1 . This observation held true regardless of the geographic separation between the two hosts. These results indicate that the composition of the microbiota is dependent more on the identity of the host than on geography and that host and microbiota have coevolved for their mutual benefit 1 . In essence we are a mosaic of millions of bacterial genomes that work in concert with the one human genome. The bulk of our bacterial colleagues are located in the gastrointestinal tract where the density of bacterial cells in the colon has been estimated at 1011-1012 cells ml 2 . This close association is mutualistic in nature. The bacteria gain a nutrient-rich environment and humans gain a vast genetic repertoire of encoded physiological functions. Within this repertoire are many genes whose products may
