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Genetic Circuits: Cells as Computers

Genetic Circuits: Cells as Computers

In 2000, two papers published in the same issue of Nature launched a new field. One described a "toggle switch"—a genetic circuit with two stable states, like a light switch that stays on or off. The other described a "repressilator"—a circuit that oscillates rhythmically,

Fecal Transplants: The Surprisingly Effective Medicine You Don't Want to Think About

Fecal Transplants: The Surprisingly Effective Medicine You Don't Want to Think About

Series: Microbiome Revolution | Part: 3 of 8 Primary Tag: FRONTIER SCIENCE Keywords: fecal microbiota transplant, FMT, C. diff, Clostridioides difficile, microbiome, poop transplant In 2013, a study was stopped early. This almost never happens in medicine, and when it does, it's usually because the treatment is killing people.

Your Second Brain Lives in Your Gut (And It's Been Talking to Your First One All Along)

Your Second Brain Lives in Your Gut (And It's Been Talking to Your First One All Along)

Series: Microbiome Revolution | Part: 2 of 8 Primary Tag: FRONTIER SCIENCE Keywords: gut-brain axis, vagus nerve, enteric nervous system, serotonin, microbiome, mental health In 2004, a team of Japanese researchers did something that would have seemed absurd to any neuroscientist a decade earlier. They were trying to understand anxiety—not

You're Outnumbered: The Bacteria Running Your Body

You're Outnumbered: The Bacteria Running Your Body

The numbers are dizzying. Your body contains approximately 38 trillion bacteria. That's about the same as the number of human cells—maybe slightly more, maybe slightly less, depending on how you count. But the number isn't the point. The point is that you're roughly

The Microbiome Revolution

The Microbiome Revolution

You are not alone in your body. Right now, trillions of bacteria, viruses, fungi, and archaea are living on your skin, in your gut, in your mouth, in every crevice and surface of your body. They outnumber your human cells. They contain more genes than your genome. They've

Probiotics: What Actually Works (And What's Expensive Yogurt)

Probiotics: What Actually Works (And What's Expensive Yogurt)

Series: Microbiome Revolution | Part: 4 of 8 Primary Tag: FRONTIER SCIENCE Keywords: probiotics, prebiotics, Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, gut health, supplement industry The probiotic industry is worth approximately $70 billion globally. That's more than the GDP of Luxembourg. Every supermarket sells yogurt promising to transform your gut health. Every pharmacy

Skin, Mouth, and Beyond: The Other Microbiomes

Skin, Mouth, and Beyond: The Other Microbiomes

Series: Microbiome Revolution | Part: 7 of 8 Primary Tag: FRONTIER SCIENCE Keywords: skin microbiome, oral microbiome, body sites, microbial ecology, biogeography We've spent this series mostly talking about your gut. Fair enough—it's where most of the bacterial action happens, and where the science is most