Bacteria with recording function capture gut health status
Numerous bacteria that reside in our stomach aid in food digestion. But what precisely do the microbes in the body perform? When do they create certain enzymes? And how do the bacteria break down meals that promote health and keep us healthy? Researchers at the Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering at ETH Zurich in Basel modified bacteria such that they serve as data recorders for information on gene activity in order to address these concerns. They have now examined these bacteria in mice in collaboration with researchers from the University Hospital of Bern and the University of Bern. This is a crucial step toward employing sensor bacteria in medicine for future uses like identifying an individual's ideal diet and detecting malnutrition. Researchers working under the direction of Randall Platt, professor of biological engineering at ETH Zurich, created the data logger function during the previous few years. They used the CRISPR-Cas mechanism, a form of immune system fo...