Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron and fat storage

[Guest guest]

>

> http://news./s/nm/20060130/hl_nm/virus_obesity_dc

>

> NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Researchers have identified a new human

> virus that increases fat deposits and, paradoxically, reduces

> triglyceride levels in animals,

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Yes, and in the spirit of blowing people's minds on Monday morning,

consider this:

http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/101/44/15718

The gut microbiota as an environmental factor that regulates fat storage

" Our findings suggest that the gut microbiota is an important

environmental factor that affects energy harvest from the diet and

energy storage in the host. "

A whole interesting concept that we're really symbionts (shadows of

" alien " ). Our intestines co-involved with the bacteria that they

harbor - and these bacteria can actually markedly affect our

metabolism. In fact, in one study, mice raised in a completely

sterile environment had marked atrophy of the intestines.

So there are a lot of things out there that we don't yet fully

understand about all of this!