Preserve the diversity of microflora
Scientists urge to create a "Noah's Ark" for microbes
Ksenia Murasheva, Naked Science
A team led by researchers from Rutgers University in New Brunswick published an article for the journal Science (Bello et al., Preserving microbial diversity), in which they described in detail the idea of creating a special repository for microorganisms. According to scientists, the biological diversity of such organisms must be preserved: if it continues to decrease, it will cause irreversible consequences for the health of the entire human population.
All microorganisms that are in symbiosis with humans are called microbiota, or microflora. There are trillions of them. Several thousand species of fungi, eubacteria, archaea and viruses live in only one intestine, most of which are bacteria (their most famous representative is E. coli). These microorganisms are necessary for the normal functioning of the human body. So, bacteria in the intestine are involved in the process of digesting complex carbohydrates and produce vitamins.
The authors of the article in Science believe that changes in the human microbiota occurring simultaneously with the industrialization of public life have a negative impact on the general state of his health. As an example, they cite a sharp increase in diseases related to metabolism, the immune system, as well as cognitive impairment, which has occurred since the Second World War. The fact is that the number of cases of diabetes, asthma, and obesity has increased primarily in industrialized countries.
The industrialization of society, according to scientists, significantly correlates with a decrease in the diversity of the human microbiota. Thus, the diversity of microorganisms in the intestines of South American Indians is twice as high as in healthy people in the United States. During industrialization, many factors affecting the human body change: the water he drinks, food, and air. All this together leads to serious changes in the microflora.
To avoid a further decrease in the diversity of the microbiota, scientists propose to create a kind of "Noah's ark" for microorganisms that symbiotically exist in humans. Researchers compare it to the "Doomsday Repository" on Svalbard – a secure bank of seed samples of major crops.
Scientists suggest that it is necessary to collect microorganisms for storage from representatives of remote Latin American and African populations with the greatest diversity of microbiota along with residents of developed countries. Undoubtedly, such a project will require large monetary investments and human resources. In addition, the practical benefits of introducing microorganisms into the human body to prevent diseases have not yet been studied well enough.
At the same time, studies on animals, in particular on fish, have shown that such a practice can have a really powerful effect. Last year, researchers from the Max Planck Institute for the Biology of Aging were able to prolong the life of fish through the exchange of intestinal microbiota.
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