General
How can certain types of medication affect the microbiota and microbes in your body?
Certain types of medications such as antibiotics can negatively impact the microbiota by killing both harmful and helpful bacteria.
Explain, what is an autoimmune disease?
Autoimmune diseases are caused by an overreaction of the immune system to the body’s own tissues and organs, research autoimmune diseases have link to disrupted microbiota.
What is the primary role of the immune system?
To protect the body by identifying and eliminating harmful pathogens like viruses, bacteria, and parasites.
How do mode of delivery and early feeding practices influence the infant’s gut microbiome?
Vaginal birth and breastfeeding expose infants to beneficial microbes that help establish a healthy microbiome early on.
The innate immune system has memory and responds rapidly when exposed to pathogens.
False, that is the adaptive immune system.
What is the role of the microbiome in our body and how does it help us?
The microbiome aids in our digestion, supports and trains our immune system, and it also keeps harmful microbes in check.
What is irritable bowel syndrome, also known as IBS?
IBS is a disorder of the gut due to an altered gut microbiota and causes symptoms of abdominal pain, bloating, and irregular bowel movements.
How do gut microbes contribute to immune system development?
They help train immune cells to distinguish between harmful and harmless substances, promoting immune tolerance and regulation.
The hygiene hypothesis suggests that modern sanitized environments limit what critical kind of early-life exposures?
Exposure to diverse microbes needed to properly train and regulate the immune system.
Babies born through C-section have different immune system development compared to babies born vaginally due to being exposed to different microbes.
True
What role do fermented foods play in maintaining a healthy microbiome?
Fermented foods, like yogurt and kimchi, provide beneficial probiotics that help enrich the microbiome, supporting digestive health and immune function.
How does environmental and social inequality shape health?
There are differences in disease prevalence across populations which are due to not only genetic factors but also societal inequalities such as unequal access to nutritious food, exposure to pollution, economic instability, and misuse of antibiotic use.
What is the difference between innate and adaptive immunity?
Innate immunity provides immediate, non-specific defense, while adaptive immunity is slower but specific and builds memory of past infections.
Why do traditional, non-industrial societies tend to have more diverse microbiomes than industrial societies?
Their diets are higher in unprocessed plant-based foods, they use fewer antibiotics, and they live in closer contact with nature.
The gut microbiome is primarily composed of bacteria, with very few viruses or fungi present.
False, the gut microbiome is made up of a diverse community of microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, and archaea, all of which play important roles in gut health.
How might long-term use of antibiotics or Western medications influence not just the microbiome, but also future health outcomes?
Long-term use can lead to reduced microbial diversity, prolonged dysbiosis, and increased risk of conditions like obesity, autoimmune diseases, and metabolic disorders.
What are metabolic diseases, give at least one example and explain how westernization relates?
Metabolic diseases are a group of disorders that affect how your body uses energy and how it processes nutrients. Some examples are type 2 diabetes, obesity, fatty liver disease. Through microbiome westernization, immigrants in countries such as the U.S have shown to have a rapid loss of microbial diversity across generations which makes you more susceptible to metabolic diseases.
Why are early-life microbial exposures critical for immune health?
They shape immune responses and reduce the risk of autoimmune and allergic diseases by teaching the immune system what to tolerate.
What does the Westernization of immigrant microbiomes suggest about the relationship between lifestyle and microbial identity?
That lifestyle rapidly reshapes the gut microbiome, showing how strongly environment and culture influence microbial self.
Probiotics are always beneficial for everyone, regardless of their existing gut microbiome composition.
False. While probiotics can be beneficial for many people, their effectiveness depends on the individual's specific gut microbiome. In some cases, they may not have the desired effect or could cause issues in certain individuals.
How does a disrupted microbiome (dysbiosis) affect mental health?
Dysbiosis can influence the gut-brain axis, potentially contributing to mental health issues like anxiety, depression, and mood disorders.
Compare and contrast adaptive immunity and innate immunity when responding to infections and pathogens (give at least 3 points).
Innate immunity has faster speed of response, non-specific, no memory, and involves cells such as macrophages, dendritic cells, NK cells, known as the first line of defense. Adaptive immunity has slower speed of response, highly specific, has memory, involves cells such as B cells and T cells.
How can antibiotics disrupt immune function through the microbiome?
By killing beneficial microbes, antibiotics can reduce microbial diversity, impair immune training, and increase susceptibility to infections and allergies
What do findings from the Hallstatt miner study reveal about the social and dietary habits of ancient people and their microbial ecosystems?
They consumed fermented foods like blue cheese and beer, and maintained a non-Westernized microbiome until the Baroque period, showing that diet, culture, and microbiota were deeply intertwined.
Once the gut microbiome develops in early childhood, it remains mostly unchanged throughout life unless disrupted by a major infection.
False. While early childhood is a critical window for microbiome development, the gut microbiome continues to change over time due to factors like diet, environment, stress, illness, and medication use.