Host-microbe interactions in metabolic health

An increasing area of research is the human-associated microbiota (comprising bacteria, viruses, fungi, unicellular prokaryotes, archaea, etc.), and especially the microbiota inhabiting the gastrointestinal tract. This has established a solid foundation of knowledge about the symbiotic relationships between our species and these microorganisms thorough our evolutionary history and throughout the industrialization of different societies. 

Furthermore, several insights gained from microbiota research have been applied to biomedicine, and this has revealed the powerful impact that our microbes can have on our health. Indeed, the exchange of nutrients, metabolites, and proteins between our intestinal microbiota and cells is fundamental in the regulation of several physiological processes governing our bodies. 

Recent advances in microbiota research strongly suggest that impairment of this cell-to-cell molecular communication contributes to—and may be the basis of—the development of some human illnesses. These include diet-associated diseases (e.g. obesity, metabolic syndrome, type-2 diabetes, celiac disease, and liver disease, among others), behavioral disorders (e.g., depression), and cognitive impairments (e.g., Alzheimer’s disease).

Our work focuses on the  molecular basis of cell-to-cell communication between intestinal microbiota and hosts, and how its impairment impacts the development of metabolic diseases.