Abstract:This study evaluated the breath CH4 excretion and concentration of M. smithii in intestinal microbiota of schoolchildren from 2 slums. One hundred and eleven children from a slum near a sanitary landfill, 35 children of a slum located away from the sanitary landfill, and 32 children from a high socioeconomic level school were included in the study. Real-time PCR was performed to quantify the M. smithii nifH gene and it was present in the microbiota of all the participating children, with higher (P < 0.05) conc… Show more
“…Environmental effects may also play a role, as children living near landfills, which had higher atmospheric methane than areas away from landfills, had a higher breath methane output and higher Mbr. smithii cell density than control children, regardless of their socioeconomic level [34]. Previous to that study, it was shown that the bacterial and fungal counts dispersed from landfills into air were up to 20 times higher than microbial counts from other areas [98].…”
Section: Mitigation Strategiesmentioning
confidence: 84%
“…This allows methane production to be indirectly and noninvasively measured, since breath methane concentration is correlated with methanogen cell density in the intestines [1]. An undetectable concentration of breath methane does not equate to the absence of archaea, and therefore false-negative interpretations of breath gas analysis may result when breath methane is at undetectably low levels [33,34]. Reported estimations suggest that between 30 and 62% of healthy humans produce detectable methane [31,35].…”
Section: Intestinal Methane and The Effect On The Hostmentioning
Methane-producing archaea have recently been associated with disorders of the gastrointestinal tract and dysbiosis of the resident microbiota. Some of these conditions include inlammatory bowel disease Crohn's disease CD and ulcerative colitis UC , chronic constipation, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, gastrointestinal cancer, anorexia, and obesity. The causal relationship and the putative mechanism by which archaea may be associated with human disease are poorly understood, as are the strategies to alter methanogen populations in humans. It is estimated that % of humans produce methane detectable in exhaled breath and in the gastrointestinal tract. However, it is not yet known what portion of the human population have detectable methanogenic archaea. Hydrogen and methane are often measured in the breath as clinical indicators of intolerance to lactose and other carbohydrates. "reath gas analysis is also employed to diagnose suspected small intestinal bacterial overgrowth and irritable bowel syndrome, although standards are lacking. The diagnostic value for breath gas measurement in human disease is evolving therefore, standardized breath gas measurements combined with ever-improving molecular methodologies could provide novel strategies to prevent, diagnose, or manage numerous colonic disorders. In cases where methanogens are potentially pathogenic, more data are required to develop therapeutic antimicrobials or other mitigation strategies.
“…Environmental effects may also play a role, as children living near landfills, which had higher atmospheric methane than areas away from landfills, had a higher breath methane output and higher Mbr. smithii cell density than control children, regardless of their socioeconomic level [34]. Previous to that study, it was shown that the bacterial and fungal counts dispersed from landfills into air were up to 20 times higher than microbial counts from other areas [98].…”
Section: Mitigation Strategiesmentioning
confidence: 84%
“…This allows methane production to be indirectly and noninvasively measured, since breath methane concentration is correlated with methanogen cell density in the intestines [1]. An undetectable concentration of breath methane does not equate to the absence of archaea, and therefore false-negative interpretations of breath gas analysis may result when breath methane is at undetectably low levels [33,34]. Reported estimations suggest that between 30 and 62% of healthy humans produce detectable methane [31,35].…”
Section: Intestinal Methane and The Effect On The Hostmentioning
Methane-producing archaea have recently been associated with disorders of the gastrointestinal tract and dysbiosis of the resident microbiota. Some of these conditions include inlammatory bowel disease Crohn's disease CD and ulcerative colitis UC , chronic constipation, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, gastrointestinal cancer, anorexia, and obesity. The causal relationship and the putative mechanism by which archaea may be associated with human disease are poorly understood, as are the strategies to alter methanogen populations in humans. It is estimated that % of humans produce methane detectable in exhaled breath and in the gastrointestinal tract. However, it is not yet known what portion of the human population have detectable methanogenic archaea. Hydrogen and methane are often measured in the breath as clinical indicators of intolerance to lactose and other carbohydrates. "reath gas analysis is also employed to diagnose suspected small intestinal bacterial overgrowth and irritable bowel syndrome, although standards are lacking. The diagnostic value for breath gas measurement in human disease is evolving therefore, standardized breath gas measurements combined with ever-improving molecular methodologies could provide novel strategies to prevent, diagnose, or manage numerous colonic disorders. In cases where methanogens are potentially pathogenic, more data are required to develop therapeutic antimicrobials or other mitigation strategies.
“…Although diet has been the primary research focus concerning intestinal microbial diversity, we take this opportunity to highlight that other external environmental factors also seem to play a role in how intestinal microbial communities take their shape [ 66 – 70 ]. In other words, it is entirely possible that natural environments can impact upon all human-associated microbial communities, which in turn could influence nerve cell communication.…”
Section: Microbes Phytoncides Ions—air To Brain?mentioning
Recent advances in research concerning the public health value of natural environments have been remarkable. The growing interest in this topic (often housed under terms such as green and/or blue space) has been occurring in parallel with the microbiome revolution and an increased use of remote sensing technology in public health. In the context of biodiversity loss, rapid urbanization, and alarming rates of global non-communicable diseases (many associated with chronic, low-grade inflammation), discussions of natural vis-a-vis built environments are not merely fodder for intellectual curiosity. Here, we argue for increased interdisciplinary collaboration with the aim of better understanding the mechanisms—including aerobiological and epigenetic—that might help explain some of the noted positive health outcomes. It is our contention that some of these mechanisms are related to ecodiversity (i.e., the sum of biodiversity and geodiversity, including biotic and abiotic constituents). We also encourage researchers to more closely examine individual nature relatedness and how it might influence many outcomes that are at the interface of lifestyle habits and contact with ecodiversity.
“…Antibiotic exposure is often higher in disadvantaged populations [260,261,262]. The microbes carried by mammals are also a product of the ecosystems in which they reside [263,264,265,266]; given that the Earth is home to upward of 1 trillion microbial species [267], human contact with many of these microbes in natural environments (the ecosystem in which we once spent the majority of our time) may have evolutionary-rooted, health-protective properties.…”
The influential scientist Rene J. Dubos (1901–1982) conducted groundbreaking studies concerning early-life environmental exposures (e.g., diet, social interactions, commensal microbiota, housing conditions) and adult disease. However, Dubos looked beyond the scientific focus on disease, arguing that “mere survival is not enough”. He defined mental health as fulfilling human potential, and expressed concerns about urbanization occurring in tandem with disappearing access to natural environments (and elements found within them); thus modernity could interfere with health via “missing exposures”. With the advantage of emerging research involving green space, the microbiome, biodiversity and positive psychology, we discuss ecological justice in the dysbiosphere and the forces—financial inequity, voids in public policy, marketing and otherwise—that interfere with the fundamental rights of children to thrive in a healthy urban ecosystem and learn respect for the natural environment. We emphasize health within the developmental origins of health and disease (DOHaD) rubric and suggest that greater focus on positive exposures might uncover mechanisms of resiliency that contribute to maximizing human potential. We will entrain our perspective to socioeconomic disadvantage in developed nations and what we have described as “grey space”; this is a mental as much as a physical environment, a space that serves to insidiously reinforce unhealthy behavior, compromise positive psychological outlook and, ultimately, trans-generational health. It is a dwelling place that cannot be fixed with encephalobiotics or the drug-class known as psychobiotics.
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