Our brain could have a community of bacteria similar to the intestinal microbiome

Our body is filled with bacteria. In our skin, our mouth, our intestines and other tissues, we can find communities of bacteria that perform important biological processes. For example, various studies have shown that the intestinal microbiome participates in many important processes for our organism, such as digestion, immunological responses, etc.

In this regard, many discoveries are constantly published on the importance of the human microbiome; However, recent research may break some paradigms on the ground. In this regard, a team of researchers suggests that there may exist in our brain bacterial communities, similar to those present in our intestines and other tissues.

Scientists discover bacterial communities in the human brain

. Rosalinda Roberts, neuroanatomist. To reach this conclusion, the researcher evaluated samples of brain tissue from 34 deceased people. Half of them were diagnosed with schizophrenia, while the others were in good health. Thus, after conducting a series badysis of the microorganisms present, they discovered that in these brains lived variable amounts of bacteria.

These microorganisms were rod-shaped and consisted of a capsule, a nucleoid, ribosomes, and vacuoles, just like any other. Bacteria More precisely, the researchers observed that the density of these bacterial communities varied according to the cerebral structure badyzed

. In this way, large amounts of microorganisms were discovered in the substantia nigra, in the hippocampus and in the prefrontal cortex. In the same vein, researchers have discovered bacteria in brain cells, called astrocytes, that play an important role in the neuronal communication process.

Beyond the identification of a possible brain microbiome, researchers do not know for the moment the origin of these bacteria; In this regard, it was inferred that the bacterium could be housed there, after being transported from the intestine through the circulatory system, crossing the blood-brain barrier to its installation in the brain. Even in this case, it is not excluded that these bacteria entered the brain tissue after surgical contamination processes during autopsies.

The existence of the cerebral microbiome has yet to be confirmed

After this discovery, the researchers conducted experiments that allowed them to discover that the cerebral microbiome was not limited to humans. In this sense, when badyzing the brain of a group of healthy mice, the presence of bacteria was highlighted. However, when working with mice reared in germ-free environments under conditions of isolation, it was not possible to observe the presence of this microbiome. Therefore, it is still too early to confirm the results

By way of synthesis, researchers have discovered that the human brain can harbor a particular microbiome, just like other tissues in our body. However, the line of research is still in its infancy to consider the results as something definitive.

In this regard, the researchers explain that since the origin of this bacterium is still unknown, it is not possible. affirm that if the microbiome is actually part of a healthy brain under normal conditions or if, on the contrary, the discovery is the result of a contamination process during the study.

Nevertheless, the existence of a cerebral microbiome could revolutionize the field of neuroscience. The researchers therefore proposed to continue the badysis of this phenomenon to determine if there is actually a microbiome in the brain and what are its effects on health.

Reference: RC Roberts, CB Farmer, CK Walker (2018). The microbiome of the human brain; there are bacteria in our brain! Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Alabama