Scientists Identify Nutrient That Helps Prevent Bacterial Infections | The State
The scientists from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) identified a nutrient that helps the gut remember previous infections and kill invading bacteria, such as Klebsiella pneumoniae (Kpn), it is the taurine.
Taurine is naturally found in the bile acids of the intestine, it helps the body digest fats and oils. Scientists believe that Low levels of taurine allow harmful microorganisms to colonize the intestine.
Research indicates that high levels of taurine produce enough hydrogen sulfide, a poisonous gas, which can prevent colonization of bacteria that cause disease. In one study, taurine was identified as the trigger for the activity of bacteria that can fight infection.
The researchers realized that the microbiota can be primed to resist subsequent infection, and that the liver and gallbladder, which synthesize and store taurine-containing bile acids, can develop long-term protection against infection.
According to the NIH, the finding published in the journal Cell could help efforts that seek alternatives to antibiotics.
Scientists are studying the microbiota to find or improve natural treatments to replace antibiotics, which damage the microbiota and become less effective as they are bacteria develop resistance to drugs.
Taurine
Taurine is a amino acid that performs many functions in the body, including work as neurotransmitter. The body produces some of the taurine it needs for these processes, according to WebMD. Taurine can also be consumed in foods that contain it.The best source of taurine is meat such as scallops, tuna, salmon, octopus, seaweed, chicken and beef.
The microbiota and infections
He microbiome throughout your body, consists of trillions of microorganisms (bacteria, fungi, parasites and viruses). Most of it is found in the small and large intestine, which we know as intestinal microbiota.
The microbiota stimulates the immune system and breaks down food compounds, notes the Harvard School of Public Health.
In the microbiota there are microorganisms that are useful and others potentially harmful; in a healthy body both types coexist without problems. But if there is a disturbance in that balance, the body can become more susceptible to disease.
The microbiota of a healthy person provides protection against pathogenic organisms (harmful) that enter the body, for example, by drinking or eating contaminated food or water.
An imbalance in the microbiota can be caused by infectious diseases, certain diets or the prolonged use of antibiotics or other drugs that destroy bacteria, dysbiosis occurs, which stops these normal interactions.
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