Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
Key Takeaways
- The ecology of the human gut consists of a complex interplay of various species, each contributing to nutrient cycling and balance.
- Probiotics and postbiotics can enhance microbial diversity, helping maintain a healthy gut ecosystem.
- Each person’s microbiome is unique, influenced by diet, exposure, and existing bacteria, highlighting the importance of individual care.
- Verb Biotics focuses on enriching the gut microbiome to support health and wellness through innovative biotic solutions.
- Tending to the gut microbiota, like a garden, fosters a beneficial environment for the host and overall well-being.
The Complexities of Human Gut
Unseen – a quiet battle rages in a hidden ecosystem. A tiny creature forages among its colony, creating chemicals meant to deter any would-be interlopers that get too close. A fast-moving predator searches for a meal, groping through the darkness for its prey. Different species help or harm their neighbors – whole food chains dependent on a careful balance of resources. New species arrive, spurring fresh competition or collaboration among the members, swathes of territory quickly exchanging hands as the conflict rages on. Times of feast or famine lead to a reshuffling of the natural order – the emergence of new populations and the disappearance of others – and the cycle for dominance begins anew. I’m speaking not of vast, glittering oceans or towering, primordial forests – but of the alliances formed, battles waged, and delicate balances maintained, all within the ecology of the human gut.
Survival of the fittest
Other bacteria pass along nutrients, such as fiber or polyphenols, down a ladder of transformation – the biproducts of one group’s feeding frenzy going on to feed another, until at last, the final product of the chain, harmful or beneficial, is taken up by the humans hosting them. This interconnectedness is key to the ecology of the human gut. Some bacteria even act as predators, such as Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus, a species which actively attacks and invades other gram-negative bacterial cells, such as the sometimes pathogenic E. coli.3
Depending on what bacteria we’ve been exposed to, what we eat, and what bacteria we already have present, the microbiome is completely unique from person to person, and can be compromised of up to hundreds of unique species.8 Despite the fact our microbial allies have always been with us, science is still continuously learning about all the effects the microbiome has on human health and wellness, and how to continue to harness it. Verb Biotics, with its function-first approach, not only prioritizes finding new and innovative biotics to add to this system – but enriching and supporting the microbiome each of us has naturally cultivated from birth as part of the ecology of the human gut.
Creating a Microbial Garden
So how can a person foster good microbial diversity? One way is to consume probiotics – living bacteria that pass through the gut. Probiotics may be particularly important to those who currently lack microbial diversity or who have recently taken an antibiotic, reducing the diversity of their microbial populations. Incorporating probiotics can positively impact the ecology of the human gut. Depending on the particular makeup of a person’s microbiota, these new organisms may temporarily colonize the gut, thus potentially adding to the total diversity present. Because microbes are in constant competition with one another and attachment is not guaranteed, taking a probiotic frequently gives bacteria a more ample chance to linger, and pass on any beneficial effects they may offer.
As we’ve expanded what we know about the gut, so too has our understanding of how to ‘tend’ to our microbiota improved. Postbiotics are substances that contain a bacterially fermented product which is then inactivated by pasteurization and can be used by other bacteria – skipping a link in the microbial ‘food chain’. Think of this as similar to adding compost from food scraps to your garden – it is essentially an act of reintroducing nutrients to a system to be snapped up by its residents, as opposed to simply adding more “seeds.”
While a new species is not introduced, postbiotics can help the beneficial microbial species that already exist in your gut flourish and proliferate in greater amounts. If we continue with the analogy of a garden, then prebiotics, in contrast, are akin to fertilizer. When introduced, they can help your native ecosystem grow and produce a larger yield of beneficial compounds – acting as ingredients to be transformed into a helpful product by the bacteria present.
As human understanding of the gut microbiome and its relationship to our health has improved, a picture of a rich, diverse environment of competition and interdependence has become clear. The intricacies of this ecosystem underline the complex ecology of the human gut. And just as every human gut is unique – so too is the composition of the ecosystem that exists inside them. So next time you take a Verb biosolution, drink some kombucha, or eat yogurt, get excited! Not only are you helping your gut bacteria– you’re tending to your own, personal microbial garden!
About the Author: Claire Highsmith is an Associate Scientist at Verb who has been working in the Biotech industry for the past three years, with an additional three years’ experience in science communication. Her research interests include the effects of microbial diversity and ecology on their host organism, and the isolation and identification of bacteria present on diverse natural sources, including wild and foraged foods.
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