by Daniel Brouse
Good gut bacteria are the microorganisms (bacteria and archaea) that live in the digestive tract. The gut microbiota produces fermentation of non-digestible substrates like dietary fibres and endogenous intestinal mucus.
“Approximately 100 trillion micro-organisms (most of them bacteria, but also viruses, fungi, and protozoa) exist in the human gastrointestinal tract — the microbiome is now best thought of as a virtual organ of the body. he human genome consists of about 23 000 genes, whereas the microbiome encodes over three million genes producing thousands of metabolites, which replace many of the functions of the host, consequently influencing the host’s fitness, phenotype, and health,” according to the Role of the Gut Microbiota in Nutrition and Health. “Gut microbes are key to many aspects of human health including immune, metabolic, and neurobehavioural traits.”
Research published in the Journal Nature states, “The human oral and gut commensal microbes play vital roles in the development and maintenance of immune homeostasis.”
In the study, Gut microbiota composition reflects disease severity and dysfunctional immune responses in patients with COVID-19, it was reported:
Although COVID-19 is primarily a respiratory illness, there is mounting evidence suggesting that the GI tract is involved in this disease. Gut microbiome composition was significantly altered in patients with COVID-19 compared with non-COVID-19 individuals. Moreover, this perturbed composition exhibited stratification with disease severity concordant with elevated concentrations of inflammatory cytokines and blood markers such as C reactive protein, lactate dehydrogenase, aspartate aminotransferase and gamma-glutamyl transferase. SARS-CoV-2 primarily infects the respiratory tract, however, pathophysiology of COVID-19 can be attributed to aberrant immune responses in clearing the virus.
Associations between gut microbiota composition, levels of cytokines and inflammatory markers in patients with COVID-19 suggest that the gut microbiome is involved in the magnitude of COVID-19 severity possibly via modulating host immune responses. Furthermore, the gut microbiota dysbiosis after disease resolution could contribute to persistent (long-COVID) symptoms, highlighting a need to understand how gut microorganisms are involved in inflammation and COVID-19.
About Good Gut Bacteria (Gut Microbiome)
About Persistent SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19
COVID Chronic Conditions and Long-COVID