Transplanting gut microbes from a young mouse to an old mouse reverses aging

For hundreds of years, human beings have been looking for a recipe that reverses aging, that makes us feel younger, that prevents the passage of time in our eyes, in our brain, in our bones…

Until now, not much has been achieved in this regard, but there is new research that shows a lot of promise, and it is based on the fecal transplant.

That’s right, faecal transplants are being studied as the next fountain of youth, and they’ve just been shown in a new study from the Quadram Institute and the University of East Anglia. Putting gut microbes from the young into the old reversed some of the hallmarks of aging, particularly in the brain and eyes.

In the study they comment that the community of bacteria that we carry in our intestine is closely related to health. The types and behavior of bacteria, viruses, fungi, and other microorganisms in the gut are related to most diseases, including cardiovascular, autoimmune, metabolic, and neurodegenerative diseases.

This relationship has been studied at the Quadram Institute, where gut microbes from older mice were transplanted into healthy young mice and vice versa. The result was surprising, as they found that the microbes from the elderly donors damaged the lining of the stomach, causing the bacteria to enter the blood and activate the immune system, inflaming the brain and eyes.

In this way, they showed that microbes from the intestines of older mice harmed the young ones, and they comment that these changes can be reversed by replacement with young donor microbiota.

Now they are studying the following:

– How long these positive effects can last.
– How the faecal microbes of the young in the elderly affect other organs, in addition to the intestine.
– Verify if the technique would also work in people.

It is an important step to improve the health of many people and, consequently, improve their quality of life.