Diet may influence gut bacteria more than genes, say scientists

a new nature-versus-nurture study of the link between gut microbes and health, researchers conclude that diet may have a stronger influence than genes in determining the mix of bacteria in the gut.

New research suggests diet influences the mix of bacteria in the gut more strongly than genes.

More and more studies are revealing the important role that our gut bacteria play in our health. Their trillions of cells vastly outnumber ours. Fortunately, many of them are "friendly," in that they help us digest food and crowd out pathogens that cause disease.

But the mix of gut microbes varies considerably from person to person and also over time. And, until now, it has not been clear whether this variation is due mostly to genes (nature), or things we can change (nurture), such as diet and lifestyle.

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Antioxidant in broccoli 'shows promise' as treatment for progeria

ew study finds that the nuclei of cells in children affected by the extremely rare disease progeria are poor at breaking down and disposing of defective proteins. It also finds that an antioxidant present in broccoli appears to give the protein-clearing system a boost, potentially reducing the effects of the disease.

The progeria-diseased cell nucleus (left) is deformed compared with a normal cell nucleus (right) because it has higher levels of progerin. Blue is DNA and red is progerin.
Image credit: K. Djabali / TUM.

Progeria - short for Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome - is an extremely rare and fatal genetic disorder where children appear to age prematurely because of a faulty protein in their cell nuclei. As the defective protein - known as progerin - accumulates, it interferes with a number of cell functions.

In the journal Aging Cell, researchers from the Technical University at Munich (TUM) in Germany, describe how they succeeded in reducing levels of progerin in diseased cells by reactivating a protein-clearing process. They did this using sulforaphane - an antioxidant found in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables, such as cabbage and Brussels sprouts.

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Red wine compound activates stress response to promote health benefits

 By now, most of us have heard of resveratrol - a compound found in red wine and grapes that has been linked to an array of health benefits, such as reduced risk of age-related diseases. Researchers have long investigated how resveratrol promotes such benefits. Now, scientists from The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, CA, offer a new suggestion; the compound stimulates a stress response gene, which activates a number of genes that protect the body.

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Cure for baldness? Hair-follicle-generating stem cells bring hope

According to the American Hair Loss Association, two-thirds of men will experience hair loss by the age of 35. But women are also affected, making up 40% of all hair loss sufferers. Affecting self-image and emotional well-being, the condition has been a difficult one to treat. But a new study brings hope - in the form of human hair-follicle-generating stem cells.

Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have published results of their study in Nature, where they describe the method by which they were able to convert adult cells into epithelial stem cells (EpSCs).

Although using stem cells to regrow hair follicles has been a potential technique for combatting baldness, until now, nobody has been able to produce enough of these cells.

The team says they are the first to achieve this result in either humans or mice.

Led by Dr. Xiaowei "George" Xu, associate professor of pathology and laboratory medicine and dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania, the scientists started their research by using human skin cells called dermal fibroblasts.

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