The discovery caused a stir in a microbial system that lives right in the human brain

Today's discovery may open an important step in neuroscience.

Previously, we knew there was a population of bacteria living in the human gut, which affected digestion, immune system, overall health, even our genes and emotions. There is also growing evidence for the surprising scale of human microbiota.

According to human body studies, there are a total of 39 trillion bacteria. They are so numerous that they account for half of the total number of cells in our bodies, causing philosophers to once again wonder: What is true man?

While the question has yet to come to a final answer, a new study presented at the 2018 Neuroscience Annual Meeting also reveals a more shocking truth: There is a microbe that lives right in our brain.

The enlarged image of one of the human brain slices shows rod-shaped bacteria that reside on the left side of a blood vessel.

The discovery of this fear is presented by researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham at the conference. In particular, neuroscientist Ronald McGregor led his team to examine brain samples of 34 people who died - about half of them suffered from schizophrenia and the other half were completely healthy before death. strong.

"We have implemented a variety of qualitative and quantitative analyzes , " the researchers said. "All samples contain bacteria in different quantities. These bacteria have rod-shaped, cell membranes, nuclei, ribosomes and vacuoles."

RNA sequencing confirms most of the bacteria that belong to the group of 3 common microorganisms are also present in the intestinal tract: Firrmicutes, Proteobacteria and Bactorioidetes.

Researchers say the bacterial density varies depending on where it is found in each brain region. The area where the black substance is located, the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex are the places where bacteria concentrate most. But they are also found in nerve cells called astrocytes, which coordinate neurotransmitter signals.

As to how bacteria are there, researchers don't know, but Roberts thinks they can be transported into the brain from blood vessels. The bacteria can once reside in axons and at the blood brain barrier.

"This is a punch in the week," said neurologist Ronald McGregor of the University of California, Los Angeles, who was not involved in the study, told Science magazine. "It's like a completely new molecular plant [in the brain] with its own needs. . This is an overly impressive discovery."

The important reason is because so far we have come to a standstill in understanding why intestinal bacteria can affect the behavioral function of the brain, even the emotions. The new finding is that the brain has its own microbial system that opens up future answers. Although the research team does not know whether the bacteria living in this brain are beneficial or harmful.

Can the intestinal bacteria turn the brain into its second home?

Another reason to be excluded is that the presence of bacteria in the brain is not natural, but the result of a surgical infection or the same thing that happened to the brain of 34 corpses. . But the ability, the spread pattern of the bacteria will eliminate it.

Research on healthy mice also found evidence of a microbial system in their brains.

The human brain microbiota is now only the initial discovery, but if future research can help explain their existence and how bacteria affect brain cells, it may is a breakthrough equal to the discovery of intestinal bacteria.

Today's research can open an important step in neuroscience, helping to reinforce other relevant findings in this area of ​​research.

"There are many things to investigate," said psychiatrist Teodor Postolache from the University of Maryland in Baltimore, who did not participate in the study, told Science. "I'm not surprised that other things can live in the brain, but of course, it's revolutionary if that's true."

If gut bacteria are also present regularly and benign in surrounding brain cells, Postolache says, they may play an important role in regulating the immune activity of the brain."There is a long way ahead to really prove it but it will be an interesting path."