A new study has found that gut bacteria can inject proteins into human cells to trigger immune responses. The discovery enhances understanding of gut-immune interactions, where microbes directly modulate pathways alongside metabolites.
The research points out that this communication mechanism between gut bacteria and human cells has not yet been recorded, which helps explain the gut microbiome’s role in inflammatory diseases.
The researchers identified that many harmless bacteria possess type III secretion systems, which are syringe-like structures that inject bacterial proteins into human cells. This structure was previously thought to exist only in pathogens.
Nutrition Insight speaks with the study’s corresponding author about the implications of this discovery and its potential to influence the design of…