Beyond the Gut: Unlocking the Secrets of the Microbiome [Video]

Alzheimer’s disease researcher Myles Minter, PhD, still sounds a little surprised while describing the improbable group of researchers he is collaborating with these days – not just neuroscientists but also colleagues from fields as disparate as gastroenterology and marine biology.

Minter and his advisor, Sangram Sisodia, PhD, the Thomas Reynolds Sr. Family Professor of Neurosciences, wanted to take their Alzheimer’s research in an unexpected direction, exploring the link between bacteria in the digestive system and brain health. The resulting study, published in July in Scientific Reports, broke new ground. It showed that a long-term course of antibiotics in mice weakened some of the telltale symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease in the brain, while at the same time producing marked changes in the makeup of their gut bacteria.

“I’ve been working with marine biologists who go deep-sea diving and take samples,” said Minter, a postdoctoral scholar in neurobiology, shaking his head. “Yes, previously I definitely would laugh at it, but once you …